As you would have expected, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and head coach Jason Garrett have both shared thoughts on the retirement of quarterback Tony Romo. Neither shied away from expressing their deep appreciation for one of the biggest names in franchise history.
Here was Jerry Jones’ statement, as shared to Twitter by David Moore of the Dallas Morning News and multiple other sources:
“We wish Tony and his family nothing but the best. As an organization, we did what he asked us to do in terms of his release, and we wanted to do what was ultimately in his best interest and in the best interest of his family.
“Tony has been a wonderful representative of the Cowboys organization for 14 years, and he left everything he had on the field. He will leave us with many great memories and a legacy of being, truly, one of the greatest players in Cowboys history. We are thrilled for him and his family that he will be able to continue working as a professional in the game he so dearly loves.
“He is a young man who is just getting started on a long journey in life. All the best my friend.”
Perhaps the most noteworthy aspect of this is the statement that how things were handled was per Tony Romo’s request. It’s in keeping with what many of us believed during this entire situation, that Jerry Jones would never do anything to hurt or offend Romo. Jerry’s notorious fondness for his players has never been stronger than how he feels about Tony.
While we don’t know how much Romo’s relationship with Jason Garret was affected by the change at quarterback, that did not stop Jason from saying the following:
“Tony Romo has a unique combination of athletic ability, arm talent, vision, and instincts for the game. What separates Tony from many other players, however, is a rare competitive spirit. Tony loves to play. Tony loves to compete. The best ones always do. In practice. during games. On the field. Off the field. Tony competes to the end in everything that he does.
“That relentless spirit that Tony plays with is contagious. He makes his teammates better. He makes his coaches better. He makes his team better. He has grown so much as a player and as a person over the course of his career and has made a significant impact on the lives of so many. I consider myself fortunate to be at the top of that list. It has been one of the great privileges of my life to work with Tony Romo, one of the greatest players in Dallas Cowboys history.”
Clearly, Jason’s respect for Tony has never wavered. If there is any rift between Romo and Garrett, we can only hope that time will heal it and their friendship will endure.
Be sure that Inside The Star will remain on top of the ongoing reactions and news stemming from Tony Romo’s retirement. Stay tuned!
Phil Simms is out! Free at last… ;^)
Finally, Romo listens to Russ Te…
Or, Wife Hits Romo Over Head & Knocks Sense Into Him…
http://www.sportingnews.com/au/nfl/news/cbs-phil-simms-contract-tony-romo-replacement-nfl-analyst-job-games-schedule/jsruv0720j41fk7em20bfxoo
;^)
I think Romo was heavily weighing 1 shot at a Lombardi with Houston, versus a #1 analyst job that the door may close on later.
I’ve mentioned how IMO it’s not worth risking decades of living with worse pain, for that 1 shot. I think he made the right decision. Mark Tuinei was the classic example – graduated to heroin dealing with pain after his playing years, OD’d on it.
And no more Simms, who was a simpleton in the booth & reluctant to call out his pals still in the game.
Simms really wasn’t good. The funny thing, though, is that I turned on him more for the disastrous commentary he recorded for Madden 16 than anything from real games.
While I was hoping to see Romo take another shot at a Super Bowl run. I’m also happy to see him go out on his terms and not on a stretcher. Or have to play out the string on a bad team.
It’s going to be a lot of fun to watch him give his views on a game. He will be great and will bring a bit of levity to the booth as well, because he’s always kind of had that light hearted, though serious, approach to life.
Really looking forward to seeing what he will bring in the fall.
I have the feeling we are going to like him more than Aikman, who is great, but can sometimes come off a bit gruff.
I rate Aikman ahead of Collinsworth and way ahead of Simms, but behind Daryl Johnston. I feel lucky on the weeks it’s a regional game and The Moose is doing it – really knows his X & O. I like Fouts very much on CBS & radio also. Esiason, not that much.
I didn’t know until Tuesday’s articles on Romo and Simms and CBS, that Simms got excoriated on Twitter for his 2017 AFC Title Game broadcast, in which he was a dunderhead (as usual). I think that may have been the beginning of the end for him as the top CBS analyst. They can’t abide a lot of ridicule on social media.