Generally speaking, I like Tony Romo. Although my overall opinion of him as a pro QB is more mid-range. He’s racked up some impressive stats as a QB and he has won some big games along the way. Unfortunately, he just doesn’t seem to have the “magic” that elite QB’s seem to have when it’s crunch time. Perhaps the better way to say it is if the team is playing well then Romo tends to follow suit. But if the team isn’t playing well, he doesn’t seem to have the capability to right the ship and get the team a win. Contrast that with the Brady, Manning, Brees or even Roethlisberger and it’s understandable why Romo is a bit frustrating for fans.
That said, stuff like this make it hard for me to not root for him. He’s got the right attitude and consistently says the right things related to his performance in the NFL. He’s not delusional about what he has or hasn’t done and it sure seems like he wants to get there. Perhaps there’s a case to be made that he wants it too badly and that results in some of his poor performances.
I’ve arrived at a theory that great players don’t actually “force” things. It only appears that way in retrospect. I think great players remain calm at keys junctures of a game and execute the plays consistently. When combined with other players who don’t remain calm, the results are big plays that look like an extension of will power by the QB. A great example of this is the Troy Aikman’s pass to Alvin Harper at the end of the game that iced the win for the Cowboys in their first NFC Championship game against the 49ers. I’ve listened to Aikman describe the circumstances surrounding the play and it’s a clear example of the 49er’s pressing and the Cowboys just executing the play like it was the first play of the game. Romo seems like he hasn’t quite figured out how to remain calm and just execute plays regardless of the situation. Instead, he’s thinking “Crunch time- time to make something happen.” It just doesn’t work that way.
Next year’s another chance for him to figure it out.