Face it, Dallas Cowboys going with Dak Prescott over Tony Romo still the right call

The NFL Network’s Friday debut of the documentary on Tony Romo made us all a bit wistful, and maybe even sad, when in fact the Cowboys best move was still to give it to Dak.

The problem was never Romo the player but rather Romo the human being. His bones were finished with football.

So when he told 105.3 The Fan this week that he feels great and could play, what he’s not factoring in is how his bones would react after a hit or two. When debating the Cowboys decision to go with Dak, which is the rage after the Cowboys quarterback continued his prolonged run of average and the release of the NFL Network documentary on Romo, health and youth must be a part of the discussion.

Since Romo joined the CBS booth, the problem has been Dak has not progressed much since his rookie season.

In what is essentially their final real preseason game, the Cowboys looked much better in their 26-24 win over the Detroit Lions, in part because Dak played like a version closer to his rookie self. He made the necessary plays the Cowboys had to have when they were staring at a 1-3 start.

And the Cowboys completely unleashed the powers of Ezekiel Elliott and used him in every manner available. He is one of the top five offensive players in football and to save him is pointless.

Dak’s receivers hover around ‘barely average,’ and the only way the Cowboys offense is going to be any more than ish is if Zeke touches it 30 times a game.

“That’s our recipe,” Cowboys guard Zack Martin said. “We have the best back in the league and we should give it to the best player in the open field. That’s the formula and when we execute it we are successful. We controlled the ball and were efficient in the passing game.”

Zeke ran it 25 times for 152 yards. He caught four passes for 88 yards. He should have played defensive back, too.

“We said coming in from the offseason we needed to use him more in the passing game and put the ball in his hands as much as we can,” Dak said.

Agreed.

The Lions could do nothing against him.

But the Lions could do just enough against the Cowboys’ defense, and specifically quarterback Matthew Stafford who made a handful of killer deep passes.

“It’s disappointing because we knew what they were doing and we were in position to make certain plays; but that’s this league. Sometimes guys make plays against you,” Cowboys cornerback Byron Jones said. “We were confident the entire game and we felt like we were going to win.”

Not everyone in the building was with Mr. Jones on this, particularly when Stafford completed a 38-yard touchdown pass to Golden Tate with 2:18 remaining in the game for a one-point lead.

On the final drive, Dak made two plays on a that would win the game that were Romo-ish.

Out of the two minute warning, Dak was stripped and should have lost the ball for a killer fumble, but he recovered it to make a pass attempt that fell incomplete.

“That was the right play because he picked it up off the bounce,” offensive coordinator Scott Linehan said. “If it had not bounced right back to him, it might have been different.”

What could have ended the game wasn’t even a costly sack. It was just an incomplete pass. And it was life.

On the next play, a third down and three, Dak completed a nine-yard pass for a first down. Two plays later, Dak completed a perfect pass to Zeke for 34 yards to set up Brett Maher’s game-winning goal as time expired.

“Zeke on a linebacker, I’m willing to take that matchup any day of the week,” Dak said.

Dak threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns to finally remove that “Dak Can’t Throw 200 Yards In a Game” tag from his name plate.

He had not thrown for 200 yards in a game since Dec. 17.

Against the Lions, he dropped in some gorgeous throws, namely to Zeke, Michael Gallup and Cole Beasley.

This is the version of Dak the Cowboys need if they are going to be more than .500.

The Cowboys are 2-2, and in an NFC where only one team, the L.A. Rams, is any good, .500 after one month of the regular season is not desired but it beats 1-3.

Zeke is Zeke, and the only way the Cowboys are a serious threat is whether Dak progresses as a passer. He’s not dumb. He’s a big, young athlete who can make serious, NFL caliber throws. He just has to do it all more often.

Going with him over Romo was always the right call, primarily because Tony’s bones just could not longer take football.

The only way the decision thrives is if Dak can progress. On Sunday, thanks to the help of Zeke, Dak progressed.

This story was originally published September 30, 2018 at 3:12 PM.