Sources: Cowboys/Romo agree on deal

[PeepShow]

-Credit: ESPN.com

The Dallas Cowboys have reached an agreement with quarterback Tony Romo on a six-year, $67.5 million contract extension, $30 million which is guaranteed, sources told ESPN's Ed Werder and ESPN.com's Matt Mosley.


Tony Romo

Quarterback
Dallas Cowboys

Profile

2007 Season Stats Att Comp Yds TD Int Rat
239 150 1901 16 9 95.6

The deal is expected to be announced at an 11 a.m. ET press conference on Tuesday. Romo's deal surpasses the six-year, $65 million contract ($27 million guaranteed) that St. Louis Rams quarterback Marc Bulger signed at the start of training camp. Romo and Bulger have the same agents, Ken Kremer and Tom Condon.

Romo was in the final year of his contract and could have become a free agent at the end of the season. By signing him to a new deal before Nov. 5, the Cowboys will be able to apply some of this money toward their 2007 salary cap.

Owner Jerry Jones could not be reached for comment.

Romo hoped to get a new deal this past summer. Jones opted to let the relatively unproven quarterback go into his first year in charge just to make sure he was worth a huge commitment.

The answer came quickly. Romo was the NFC's offensive player of the month in September and Dallas finished October with the No. 1 offense in the conference.

Romo is in his fourth year in the NFL, but has started only 17 games. He's won 12 and done so in such dazzling fashion that Roger Staubach's grandson likes wearing Romo's No. 9 jersey, not his grandpa's No. 12.

"He's fun to watch," Staubach said recently.

Romo burst onto the scene last October, with coach Bill Parcells sending him in to replace Drew Bledsoe at halftime of a Monday night game against the New York Giants. His first pass was an interception and that close game turned into a lopsided loss. Yet his career was about to take off.

Dallas won five of his first six starts in such spectacular fashion that some fans hung Romo's name on the Ring of Honor in Texas Stadium on Thanksgiving. And that was before kickoff, which meant prior to him matching a club record with five touchdown passes.

This season, Romo already has set the club record for 300-yard games. He leads the NFC with 1,984 yards passing and 16 touchdowns; both are second in the NFL behind Tom Brady.

Pretty good for a guy who wasn't drafted coming out of Division I-AA Eastern Illinois.

Cowboys scout Jim Hess recommended that the Cowboys sign Romo when he went undrafted. Fellow Eastern Illinois alum Sean Payton, then the Cowboys passing game coordinator, and assistant David Lee both played a large role in Romo's development. It was Lee, now the offensive coordinator at Arkansas, who changed the quarterback's throwing motion from a three-quarter delivery to more of an overhand style. Lee noticed immediately that Romo had excellent footwork, and tried to build around that. If not for the release of Quincy Carter during the 2004 training camp, the world may have never known about Romo. Carter had just led the team to the playoffs, and the Cowboys had traded a third-round draft choice to the Texans for Drew Henson. With Parcells favorite Vinny Testaverde on the roster, Romo may have been the odd man out.

With every great game Romo's had this season, Jones has known the pricetag for the new contract was rising. He figured it was worth it to reduce the risk. Besides, the better Romo does, the more money the team makes.

"A lot of times, you don't have a choice, so you've got to make a decision right there. But we have the luxury of time," Jones said recently. "It fits him, too. It lets him have a better feel for where he's going to be."

Being quarterback of "America's Team" has fit Romo quite nicely.

He's already dated country star Carrie Underwood and been linked in gossip magazines to Jessica Simpson and, as of this past weekend, Britney Spears. Romo spent his bye weekend in Los Angeles and wound up at the same place as Spears, landing him back in the tabloids.

"It comes with the territory, I guess," he said.

So do the big bucks.

YAY!!! How bout the Cowboys!!!

 

[phantomgerald]

He's growing into a top class quarterback, and throwing that money on him is better than wasting it on a useless rookie who has loads to learn. Cowboys are building a nice franchise.

 

[Enigma22]

ya he can be a top qb for years to come.

 

[PeepShow]

Yeah. I have a friend at school and he knows quite a bit about football, believe me. And he just wont sell himself to say that ROmo isnt a good QB. He says he isnt even a top 10 QB in the NFL. IDC who you are. You can not name one other QB that is better than Romo in the NFL besides Manning or Brady. You just cant. End of Story. I love this long term deal.

 

[NYKings]

Brett Farve? And after the first two weeks probably Eli Manning too. Romo isn't that great. He is top 10 but that's cause the rest of the league is kinda ehhh. I'm not for extending contracts during the season. If you don't get the extension there's more incentive to be perfect but now Romo's got money 31 mill guaranteed so it's not guaranteed he'll play as good as he would without the money. That's just my theory though.

 

[PeepShow]

Did you seriously just say that Eli Manning is better than Romo. I can maybe hear an argument from Farve, maybe. But Manning? LMAO. No further comment

 

[NYKings]

Compare what Romo has to work with to what Manning has. Either way if you'd like to put Manning down. Farve is still better and I can't see Romo winning the big game. You think the C'Boys are going to the SB?

 

[PeepShow]

Yes. The Packers just seem to squeek by every week and dont look that impressive. Add to the fact that they go beat by the Bears. Not good, but hey, they arent too bad. I just cant see anyone beating them in the NFC. Granted we have only played half of a season

 

[NYKings]

I see exactly where you're coming from but once the Cowboys beat the Skins and the G-Men again I can't agree with you. It goes back to the "who have they played." It's a test for both Giants and Cowboys Week 10. Besides week 1 where the giants were a different team, neither of the teams have played any contenders, I could be forgetting somethin though. Too lazy to check.

 

[Fatal 55]

I still think Romo is over-rated, but that's just me. There are far better Quaterbacks who don't put as impressive numbers up because of a lacking offensive line.

Marc Bulger for example, yes some of you may laugh & go HA Rams 0-8 but if it wern't for the fact that our O-line is average & that our D-fence is one of the worst in the league he would probably be Pro-bowling! Seriously... Well, mabe it's just i'm biased towards St Louis :shifty:!

Give Romo a bad team & he does worst than other people! Period!

 

[NYKings]

^^Not a bad argument. They don't have ONE, not even ONE, offensive lineman from the beginning of the season. Tough luck.

 

[phantomgerald]

Ok now that you bring up Favre, I have to defend him. He's definately a better quarterback than Romo. He doesn't have the same crop of receivers that Romo has, obviously Dallas's is better. Favre has proven himself in every scenario possible, and is definately top 5 quarterbacks ever, no matter how you look at it. At Favre's age, Romo would probably have declined rapidly. Still I think Romo is at least top 10.

1. Manning
2. Brady
3. Favre
4. Brees
5. Rothelisberger
6. Palmer
7. Romo
8. Eli Manning
9. Kitna
10. Young

That's how I would rate the top 10 quarterbacks.

 

[NYKings]

^^^ I agree with most of that, Hasselback's gotta get in there though and Chad Pennington..





Nah, I'm only kidding but Hasselback for sure

 

[Fatal 55]

^ I'd remove Kitna & put in either as NYKings said Hasslebeck or maybe Bulger instead! Add Philip Rivers in as well! No Seriously... Rivers > Kitna!

 

[phantomgerald]

Kitna have been immense this season. Nobody expected the lions to be this good, and Kitna is one of the reasons. He went from a second stringer to a recognised quarterback. Bulger have an array of offensive weapons, but have never carried the team when they needed him to. Hasselback have a good OL and a great RB to complement him, and he's not like the Hasselback of 05.