ARLINGTON, Texas — Tony Romo’s pristine reputation as a broadcaster is his uncanny ability to predict plays, but he’s extended his talents as a forecaster to the actual games themselves.
In the early moments of the Dallas Cowboys game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday in Arlington, the ex-Cowboys QB turned CBS NFL analyst said he thought his former team would win the game.
It sounded a bit homer-ish. The Cowboys were 7.5-point underdogs, and started backup quarterback Cooper Rush.
Maybe it’s time for Romo to take his talents not to South Beach, but Vegas. Possibly Shreveport. It’s closer to his house in Dallas.
Of course the Cowboys beat the Bengals.
This is the NFL, where the favorites routinely lose, and the losers often win.
Because the margin between the winner and loser is usually about three points.
Unlike some of the truly bad to mediocre franchises around the NFL, no team owns “Interesting” quite like the Dallas Cowboys.
“You see how we’re coming … for sure,” Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs said after the game.
Yes. We’ve seen this before.
And we fall for it every single time.
That’s on us. Maybe we should get out more.
This team won’t win a Super Bowl, but they will do just enough to retain your interest.
All the Cowboys need to do is escape this stretch without starting quarterback Dak Prescott a game within .500, and this will be a success.
The earliest they can expect him back is Oct. 16 for their game in Philadelphia on NBC’s Sunday Night Football. That is best case.
Anyone who thinks this scenario is likely needs to slow down on those $24 JerryRita’s.
Dak’s return all depends on when he can grip the football adequately; bet big he will rush this return. (There is a terrible Cooper Rush pun in here, but I’m just too lazy to find one).
Looking ahead at the upcoming schedule, and a couple of wins could happen.
They have games upcoming against the New York Giants in New Jersey, at home against Washington, and then on the road against the Rams.
There is a win, possibly two, in this trio.
The Giants are a fake 2-0. The Washington Football Team’s QB is Carson Wentz.
The Rams ... the Rams ... are a problem; the Cowboys are not winning in LA.
But this is what a win against the Bengals on Sunday does to the Cowboys, and the rest of us who follow this painful reality TV series. It gets all of us believing maybe they can survive this stretch, and do something with the rest of their season.
Cowboys linebacker Micah Parsons said after the game he visited the chapel on Sunday morning; the “Chapelman said, ‘You have to go through tests to get your testimony’. When I heard that, I was like, ‘’Wow we’re going through all these injuries.’
“Sometimes, you have to go through some stuff before you get to where you want to go. Right now, we’re still going through the storm. But as we go through the storm, there is going to be light at the end of the tunnel. I think that’s where we are headed.”
Typically with the Cowboys, that light is a bolt of lightning followed by Hurricane Jerry, and he’s still a Category 5.
Until Hurricane Jerry makes landfall, and this whole thing goes to hell, the Cowboys should feel better about themselves one week after their season debut.
The Cowboys improved from Week 1 to Week 2, specifically on defense.
Parsons may be the best defensive player in the league soon, if he isn’t already. The Bengals offensive line was atrocious, but the Cowboys defense played well.
Rookie left tackle Tyler Smith has made the loss of Tyron Smith palatable.
The play calling, and execution, in Week 2 was dramatically better than the XFL-level performance in Week 1.
For a backup quarterback, Cooper Rush did what a decent backup should do. He made a few plays, and didn’t hurt his team.
He gave his team a chance, and they won.
If he can do it a few more times, the Cowboys can survive this stretch without their starting quarterback with their season still intact.
They probably won’t win a Super Bowl, but they do make it interesting.
