While Surgery Likely For Romo, Team Expecting “3-4 More Years” As Starter
Tuesday, January 26, 2016 8:07 PM CST
By Nick Eatman
DallasCowboys.com Staff Writer
@nickeatman
MOBILE, Ala. – The Cowboys might have their eyes on potential future quarterbacks at the Senior Bowl, they are certainly paying close attention the quarterback they’ve got.
Tony Romo will undergo a CT scan this week and it’s starting to look more and more as if the veteran quarterback will indeed require surgery on his collarbone that he’s injured three times in five years.
“I wouldn’t say it’s 100 percent but it’s leaning hard that way,” Cowboys VP Stephen Jones said Tuesday from Mobile. “But we’ve still got some scans to look at and we still have to do what’s in his best interest.”
Romo said on Saturday that surgery is a possibility, but both the quarterback, Jones and head coach Jason Garrett didn’t seem concerned with the timetable of his return.
“We don’t think it’s going to put him behind very much,” Garrett said, regarding a potential surgery. “Ultimately it’s a medical decision. The people who are experts, the doctors, the trainers, those guys know much more about it than I know about it and frankly than Tony knows about it. If they think that’s a good thing for him to do, we don’t think that’s going to put him behind or prevent him from getting better this offseason, it makes sense to do it. I think we’re still in that decision making process and we’ll make the right decision for him and for our football team.”
If surgery is indeed the route the Cowboys decide, Stephen Jones said it won’t change the offseason plans.
“I don’t think it’s anything that’s going to affect anything,” Jones said. “He should be ready to go by the time May rolls around and he should be able to put that behind him if that’s ultimately the final decision. We feel good about where he’s going to be. I think he’s chomping at the bit. If you look at those quarterbacks who were in the final four teams they are all guys with a lot of experience and close to his age. So he’s more convinced than ever we can get this thing done with him.”
Jones was also asked if Romo’s recent injuries have prompted them to look at adding a younger quarterback.
“You can’t put your head in the sand,” Jones said. “He’s certainly had some injuries and we have to be aware of that. If we do decide to pick a quarterback fairly high, Tony’s a great example of how it can serve a young quarterback well to watch for two to three, or four years. Whatever that number is going to be because obviously we think Tony is our best chance to go win a Super Bowl. We think he will be that guy for the next 3-4 years.”