My Tony Romo Blog

After all of the talk surrounding the loss of Tom Brady, many overlooked what turned out to be the best game of the week. The Monday night showdown between Philadelphia and Dallas saw 7 lead changes, with Dallas finally prevailing in the 4th quarter in a 41-37 thriller at Texas Stadium.

The game showcased two high-powered offenses lead by two volatile quarterbacks, Philly's Donavon Mcnabb and Dallas' Tony Romo.

McNabb, who resembled the sly quarterback we once knew, looked healthier and more versatile than ever. McNabb was 25 of 37, for 281 yards and a touchdown. He also had a couple of carries for 20 yards.

"These were two great football teams going at it...and there are a lot of positives we can take from this game." McNabb, always humbling, also added "What we need to do is focus on working on the negatives."

One of those negatives was the knucklehead play by DeSean Jackson. McNabb connected with Jackson on a long pass and Jackson proceeded to toss the ball backwards in celebration before crossing the goal line, losing the touchdown after review. The Eagles did retain possession and would end up scoring a few plays later on a Brian Westbrook touchdown.

Dallas also had their fair share of bad plays.

Early in the game, Romo lost grip of the football on a routine hand-off and fumbled into his own end zone. The Dallas play-caller was able to recover his own fumble, but when he tried to make a play the ball was knocked loose and recovered by the Eagles for a TD.

Romo finished 21 of 30, with 312 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also threw a costly pick early in the game.

Romo, who earned his fantasy owners a multitudinous amount of points this week (including myself), connected twice with Terrell Owens. The combined effort of the two Dallas stars garnered the pair some recognition as the best quarterback/receiver duo the NFL has ever seen. When you are mentioned alongside the famed duos of the NFL, such as Montana/Young and Rice or Manning and Harrison, you are obviously doing something right.

T. O.'s two touchdowns also propelled him past Cris Carter into 2nd on the NFL's all-time touchdown receptions list. Now, only the great Jerry Rice stands ahead of him. Rice finished his career with an astounding 197 TD receptions, a record some believed would never be touched. Owens 132 career, touchdown receptions trails Rice by 65 TD's. T.O. is certainly on pace to break that record, granted he plays long enough while staying healthy.

Owens, always McNabb's "humble" antagonist, was quoted after the game, "It doesn't matter what [the Eagles or anyone else] say(s) about me now." He also added, "The Lord has obviously blessed me with a lot of talent."

The game really was an old fashioned NFC showdown. It was the 6th highest scoring contest in Monday Night Football history, and the first half point tally was tied for 2nd all-time on a Monday night.

If you missed this one, try to catch some highlights, because it sure was a shootout.

After the game, Cowboys coach Wade Phillips said, "We kept believing in each other, and we came out on top."

If Monday night's action wasn't enough for you, the two teams will meet again in week 17 for the season finale of this great NFC East rivalry. After the performance each team put up on Monday night, one would tend to believe playoff implications will most certainly be on the line.

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I listened for about 5 minutes to the rekindled debate about Andy Reid and his kids this week. I have turned the channel when it has been the topic of conversation on 610 WIP, PTI or any other outlet. Only one aspect of the situation is relevant to me. Are the Eagles playing well? All of the other aspects of this sad situation belong to the Reid family, not to the audience at large, despite all of the media coverage.

I had been very optimistic about the Cowboys game Sunday night. The events of this week have tempered that enthusiasm. I do feel that Reid's ongoing family drama has been affecting his ability to lead the team to a certain degree, but I am no where near the camp calling for his job. I am more nervous about Sunday's outcome than I was before the latest flare-up.

I have felt for several weeks that Donovan McNabb has been playing himself back to form, week by week. He is moving much better, and his performances are improving as his knee strengthens. He will have to be able to move against the Cowboys. The Cowboy D is 6th in the NFC and 10th in the NFL in sacks with 18 in their 7 games. They have 10 INTs which puts them tied for 6th in the league. They are 10th in the league at 208.9 passing yards allowed per game. Those stats are not that bad, but they did have had the good fortune to face some less than formidable QBs. They got the Bills QB in his second start and the Vikings' Tavaris Jackson is in his first season. The Dolphins Trent Green is at the end of his career and Rex Grossman was leading the Bears when they played. The Eagles offensive line was very disappointing early on, but has also been playing more efficiently in recent games. They will have a hard time gaining rushing yards this week. Like the Vikings last week, the Cowboys are good against the rush, only giving up 87 yards per game on the ground. Despite their strong defensive numbers, the Cowboys are giving up 22.6 points per game. Of course, the 48 they allowed in the Patriots game skews that number some. Remove that game and they have allowed 110 in 6 games. That is 18.3 per and is still only good for 12th in the league.

The Eagles have been carried by their D all season. They only allow 16.7 per game. The Cowboys rushing attack is strong. Marion Barber is a good back, getting 5.7 per carry. The Eagles rush D has performed very well, allowing 90.4 per game. That is good for 8th in the NFL. Jimmy Johnson's defense has been known for creating turnovers, but they have not done that well this year. They are 25th in the league with just 5 INTs. However, they are getting to the QB and are 3rd in the NFL with 24 sacks. Trent Cole has 9 to lead the league. They must stuff the Cowboys run game, so that it becomes about Tony Romo. I think that Jimmy Johnson will make that happen. If Donovan McNabb can stake them to an early lead, it will be that much easier. McNabb has been floating up the passing stats and is now in the top 10 in completions in the NFL and is 6th in total passing yards. Tony Romo has tossed 9 picks already, McNabb has had just 2.

In the Cowboys last 3 games, they had a tough time with the Vikings and Bills, and lost to the Patriots. The bye week could not have come at a better time for them. The Eagles play is inching forward with each week. The Cowboys are a better team right now, but I think the Eagles win. This is a must win to keep their payoff hopes alive. It is not so immediately important to Dallas. I also am expecting the Cowboys balloon to deflate in the 2nd half of the season. This is the beginning of that.

Eagles 29 - Cowboys 20

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I'm lucky to be alive. On Sunday evening, while sitting comfortably on the Eagles' bandwagon, I was trampled by an exodus of millions of Eagle fans. Only Swoop (Birds' mascot) and myself remain. The road's now bumpy and the sky's grown dark. Nonetheless, I am alive, and contrary to popular belief, so are the Philadelphia Eagles.

I know what you're thinking... I'm a biased idiot who can't come to grips with the failure of another season... you're probably right. After all, I once rode the Eagles' bandwagon alone as Richie Kotite drove it straight off a cliff, but that's beside the point. The Eagles are in the playoffs. The conclusion to their 2009 season has yet to be written. A win on Saturday won't be easy. In fact, it will take a mammoth effort. As Harvey Dent (yes, the Batman guy) once said, "The night is always darkest before the dawn." Here's my crusade to bring everyone back on board, or at the very least, my dad.

You'll argue: Dallas beat Philadelphia twice already this year, handedly too.

Very, very true. The Eagles' performances against the Cowboys have been two of their ugliest outings. This is the toughest case to argue, by far. I'm up to the challenge. Don't worry, I promise not to berate you with the cliché, "it's tough to beat a team three times in one season." I don't buy that garbage anyway. The Eagles fell to the Giants on three occasions in the 2000 season. Last year the Ravens lost to the Steelers thrice (not a real word, I know). Defeating the same team three times happens more often than not, so I'm avoiding that defense. Instead, I'll build my case on the experience factor, the propensity of Andy Reid's teams to bounce back after devastating losses, and most importantly, "Any Given Sunday."

Tony Romo has... count 'em... zero playoff victories. Donovan McNabb has nine. McNabb hasn't been the most electrifying postseason quarterback, but winning is winning. McNabb understands what it takes to win in January. The same is true for Wade Phillips (0) and Reid (10). At the two most important positions on any football team, the Eagles hold an overwhelming 19-0 advantage.

I could spend an entire weekend detailing Reid's horrible personnel decisions (early years), play calling, and the granddaddy of them all; game management. Why waste the time? There are two things every Eagle fan wants to change but can't. 1. Reid's game management. 2. Reid's sideline style when the temperature is above 60 degrees. With that out of the way, Reid is exceptional at rallying his team. See Arizona on Thanksgiving in '08 after getting crushed by Baltimore, or the Eagles rebounding (12-2 run to close the season) after starting the '03 season with humiliating losses to the Bucs and Patriots (to open the Linc nonetheless), OR overcoming McNabb's injury and two consecutive blowouts to Tennessee and Indy in '06 to finish 5-0 and win the NFC East with Jeff Garcia. Like the previous run-on sentence, the list goes on and on. The media perceives Reid's short term memory and "we need to do a better job there" shtick as arrogance. In reality, his example to forget and move on requires his team to do the same.

Any Given Sunday. No, not the movie, the principle. The Giants winning Super Bowl XLII, the Cardinals' extraordinary run in the 2008 playoffs, the Browns shocking the Steelers to ruin Pittsburgh's season (Ok, that was a Thursday game). Any team, in any stadium, on any day, can win a football game. We see this more in the NFL than any other league. Let's wait to hear the fat lady before we cry choke.

You'll argue: The Eagles' offense is too inconsistent

Agreed, 113% agreed. The Eagles' offense is wildly inconsistent. They're unstoppable for one quarter and floundering the next. You're right, if only we had the offensive consistency of the Dallas Cowbo..... what's this? Another volatile offense? Indeed. Dallas is one of the NFL's hottest teams, but even Romo and company struggle to keep their collective foot on the gas. Take a look at their second half points over Dallas' last eight games; 7*, 3, 7, 14*, 14*, 7, 3, 7. (The *'s represent garbage TDs that were scored in defeats with 38, 58, and 2 seconds remaining in decided games, respectively.) That's an average of 5.13 second half points, or 7.75 if you include the garbage TDs. Not exactly lighting up the scoreboard. Don't bother arguing that Dallas had already clinched victory either. In four of those eight games, they trailed in the second half (eventually lost three). Another game was against New Orleans, who nearly came back. Only in the remaining three games did Dallas lead by two or more scores (OAK, WASH, PHI).

You'll argue: I hate it when Donovan McNabb smiles when he should be steaming

Me too. A little Tom Brady please, eh Don?

You'll argue: Donovan McNabb stinks. He'll never bring home a Super Bowl

My friends, my friends. Yes, his, "I am the victim" persona is annoying, and Peyton Manning he is not, but Donovan McNabb is a fine quarterback. McNabb's inaccuracy is the rallying cry for the KKNC (Kevin Kolb Now Clan). Not so fast. Allow me to introduce to you a fella named John Elway. You see, Elway was never the most accurate quarterback. He, like McNabb, also experienced trouble winning Super Bowls for the first 14 years of his 16 year career. I know most of you just slammed your fist on the desk and thought (maybe shouted), "oh no he didn't." Well, I did. If McNabb plays another 5-6 seasons in the NFL, he'll likely surpass Elway in nearly every statistical category except interceptions. I'll now wait seven seconds for those of you who fell off your chair to get situated....... We good? Let's continue. Over the course of his 16 year career, Elway completed 60% or more of his passes in only three seasons, finishing with a career mark of 56.9%. McNabb is currently at 59% for his career. He's surpassed the 60% plateau four times in his career, including the last three seasons. McNabb doesn't have the Super Bowl wins that Elway has... yet. Old Johnny finally struck Super Bowl gold in years 15 and 16 of his illustrious career. While McNabb has won plenty of big games throughout his career (you don't win 9 playoff games and 4 ½ division titles without winning big games; I can list them if you want), he has yet to summit the championship mountain. I believe in McNabb. I think he's improving. I know he won't lay a stinker come Saturday. If only he could play safety too...

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