Brohm no longer needed in Dallas

by Nathan Wall, staff writer

                                                                

The excitement ran through me as I gathered my pizza rolls and beer.

 After several months of waiting, speculation and four weeks of preseason, it was finally here. It was time to watch America’s Team pour it on the losers from the Meadowlands.

The game was the Cowboys versus the Giants, set for a Week One showdown and a head start in the NFC East. Wade Phillips came in and fixed the defense. The two-headed monster of JJ and Marion the Barbarian were set to run all over defenses behind a revamped O-line that is the biggest in the NFL. Terrell Owens was happy and Jason Garretts offense was in full force, minus just the speedy Terry Glenn.

Only one question remained, do the ‘Boys need Brian Brohm? The entire day I had been praying that the Cowboys would not need to use one of their two first-round draft picks next year to select the senior quarterback from Louisville. It wasn’t just that entire day, but through the entire off-season since that fateful snap in Seattle. If the Cowboys don’t need Brohm, that would mean the un-drafted rookie from Eastern Illinois would be having a standout year.

Dandy Don, Roger the Dodger, Danny White and Troy Aikman, The Cowboys have been spoiled at the QB position for many years. The city that judges NFL success by how many Super Bowls it wins has been starved for the next heir to the thrown.

Was I short on faith?  Heck no, I just wanted to be sure that the six TDs and eight interceptions Romo threw down the stretch last year were more of a product of the pressure put on by a faulty defense, and not just bad play. Because, if it was the latter, Brohm would be needed to move this franchise in the right direction from 2008 and on.

After 300 yards, 5 TDs and many beers and screams later, I was comforted. Sure, it was just one game, but the young QB who had trouble producing down the stretch last year came in and single-handedly beat the Giants. And it wasn’t just this game either. All season long, I have now found myself shouting the words, “We don’t need Brian Brohm!” out of joy for Tony Romo's success, rather than hopeful reassurance.

Going to the Rams game and watching Romo run for 64 yards for a first down off of a high snap gave this diehard Dallas fan a glimpse of what it might have been like to watch Roger Staubach play. Or was it the juke moves he gave All-Pro linebackers Jason Taylor and Brian Urlacher that prompted my father to call and ask me why Romo wasn’t wearing number 12?

All I can say is that 1,200 yards, 13 total TDs and an NFC leading 112.9 passer rating is a lot more of a resume to put together for a contract than Brohm would have to do. Romo has 4,067 yards and 31 total TDs since coming in for Bledsoe. Good enough to be the Cowboys’ single-season passing champ in just 14 starts.

Oddly enough, my biggest fear (if you could even call it a fear) for the Cowboys this season has turned into the biggest strength. If Tom Brady wasn’t having such a huge year in New England, all the talk on Sports Center would be about Romo.

When the defense fails, no worry. Just put Romo in. When the defense is stout, even better. Romo will still tack 34 points on your favorite team. Sure, it’s early in the season, and Romo has only started a full 14 games. But in today’s NFL, it’s obvious he can play.

Don’t worry about his contract; it’ll get done. Even if it doesn’t, he’s not going anywhere because he will be franchised. The Cowboys have their heir to the thrown, and it’s not that guy from Louisville. What was his name?