Whose Fault Now, Cowboys? Tony Romo, No Doubt

A person can only give Tony Romo the benefit of the doubt for so long. By now, we are long past extending our sympathy to an unskilled player who is not reaching standards with a demanding, heavy scrutinized franchise, as we should be with a man who continues to make the same mistakes and not learn from his boo-boos.

Romo is playing for the wrong team, an organization not committed to failure and instead perfection. But we never see perfection from Romo, and if Cowboys’ fans happen to witness a paragon of excellence, it’s never during a critical time in the game. That’s usually when he blows it. Late in the game.

When he’s under pressure and needs to make a statement, Romo chokes on damn applesauce. The worst he’s ever choked on was Gerber’s baby food. Over the past few seasons, as Romo quarterbacked the Dallas Cowboys to early postseason exits or horrifying collapses, which usually comes no later than December, he’s rarely been blamed or vilified following embarrassing losses that were a disgrace to Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who spent top-dollar to assemble the best product.

Maybe Romo can pioneer the Cowboys to a Super Bowl victory, but he’d have to minimize the number of turnovers, cease making poor decisions with the ball and stop being so careless and play with more assertiveness. Sometimes watching Romo makes me cringe. Sometimes watching Romo makes me less interested in watching the Cowboys. It’s the same old routine, the same tired absurdity each week and Romo is so predictable, that fans don’t have to even watch to get the 411.

Be consistent and protect the ball. That’s all we ever ask of Antonio Ramiro Romo, the choking quarterback who is overpraised and defended by his peers, fans and bosses. For almost six years, Romo wasn’t keeping up with the Joneses, not then, not ever. It’s well established that Romo, who threw four interceptions on Sunday in a disastrous 29-24 loss to the New York Giants, is not the next elite quarterback. He’s not even close to what Troy Aikman and Roger Staubach were. It’s troubling enough that Romo, whose inability to complete and deliver a pass to his wide receivers, cannot ever advance further than the first round or even escape the first round with a postseason victory. And if he’s not mistake-free and persists on blundering week in and week out, Romo will always be victimized by a defensive back and will have the ball picked.

One day, eventually, Jones will come to his senses and replace him with another quarterback. No one in pro football, after having an awful performance, has been appreciated more than Romo. He thinks he’s one who should be anchoring the Cowboys. And, of course, just by his body language and frantic looks, which has become old news lately for Cowboys fans, Romo does not take accountability for his team’s failures. Like so many tortured fans, mad with the world and disappointed at the organization, they surely could run Romo out of town, burn his expensive jerseys and stage a funeral outside of Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

It’s hard to believe in a guy when each week he repeatedly turns over the ball to cost the Cowboys and his teammates a victory. It’s hard to believe in a guy who is frequently shaky and vulnerable for attack every time he takes a snap. It has become common to watch Romo gag each week, like a man gagging on a T-bone steak. The Heinrich maneuver could in all probability save that man’s life, whereas for Romo, not even an emergency rescue procedure could rescue him from hell. In fairness, Romo is likely less blameless, with a team that consist of an aging core, with a team that lacks an offensive line. It doesn’t help that Jason Garrett is on the sideline as Cowboys head coach, as his bad clock management and unsuccessful play calling could have an unwanted effect on Romo.

If people would just look at the offense, they’d see an aging group of players who were recruited by Bill Parcells – Miles Austin and Jason Witten. As they approach the end of their careers, DeMarcus Ware and Jay Ratliff are only getting older and cannot run as hard as they once did to rush the opposing quarterback. But before the Cowboys are described as a mediocre team for the next few years, which makes sense if Romo is still quarterbacking the team, let’s not forget that Dez Bryant is the star of the future. And, in fact, he should be the only player worthy of wearing the star logo helmet, after making what appeared to be a spectacular game-winning catch Sunday.

Sadly enough, the Cowboys are a staggering 3-4 and are in tremendous disarray, with another season in jeopardy of nothing more but a waste. If Jones doesn’t care much, then apparently no one else cares much, either, when in fact all of his players are paid and overly pampered. This is a huge problem for the Cowboys and Romo, about as worst as it can get for a famous team that has failed to reach expectations and is bothered by fiascoes, which has crippled Jones’ ‘Boys for years. What should have been an eye opener a long time ago was Romo, who was given more than enough time to correct his throwing mechanics, his weak spots and find ways to eliminate costly mistakes that normally results in an intercepted pass. Romo can’t breathe, nor can he dodge the scrutiny, after throwing to men wearing blue uniforms instead of those wearing white. What I know is, and you should know this as well, is that the Cowboys won’t ever again see triumph until Jones part ways with a fluctuant quarterback.

I don’t care that he becomes the first ever Cowboys quarterback to throw for 500 yards in a game. I don’t care that he’s signed through 2013. I don’t care that Bill Polian, a former Panthers and Colts executive, advised the Cowboys to stick with him. And I certainly don’t care that Romo wasn’t the center of attention or even blamed for most of the team’s misfortune, during a time in his life when he was dating starlet Jessica Simpson and jetted off to a romantic trip to Mexico before a playoff game. I don’t even care whether or not Terrell Owens was a detriment to the team and divided his teammates. That’s all irrelevant now. Talk about what’s relevant.

Romo has won only one playoff game in his six seasons as the Cowboys’ starting quarterback. Romo, sad to say the least, is really not much of a difference from Ryan Leaf, Quincy Carter, Vinny Testaverde or Drew Bledsoe. This season alone, he has nine touchdowns and 13 interceptions. As we are midway through the NFL season, Romo is declining, retrograding and deteriorating. Where he stands now is far from elite. Where he stands now is far from a Super Bowl winner. If they could, the Cowboys would snatch Aikman from the broadcasting booth and sign him to a deal to take snaps on Sundays. If you think this is a joke, it’s really not a joke, it’s not a laughing matter. It’s a disgrace to a well-respected franchise, which is now America’s most scrutinized franchise, as Romo and company makes a damn mockery out of a team built of champions, good character and grace.

If Romo is their guy, ‘Boys won’t be ‘Boys.

Truth is, he’s not a franchise quarterback, he’s a franchise disgrace, but Jones doesn’t see it. Then again, maybe he does and just doesn’t want change and rather continue to head down the wrong direction, delaying success and keeping an impatient Dallas fan base waiting for different results.

If the Cowboys are to escape misery and win a Super Bowl title, Jones must get rid of Romo.

No other solution.

Luchs Scandal Unmasks Sleazy Age in Football: Paying Student-Athletes Is Absurd

How fascinating is it that former agent Josh Luchs gave Ryan Leaf $500 a month, confident he could woo the megastar quarterback to be his client? This and other stories Luchs share in an interview with Sports Illustrated exposes all the duplicity transpiring in college sports, and sadly it ruins the integrity.

Amid an age that isn’t to be trusted, in a country suffering from an economic downturn, agents who lavish college athletes with money ought to be ashamed. If you haven’t noticed, the latest brouhaha to disturb our senses broke in the news, as scandals involving slimy agents have been going on for a long time now. Get used to it. This nonsense won’t disappear any time soon.

The idiots wearing suits will pose as businessmen, commit fraud and offer money to athletes as a way to bribe players. There’s a reason scandals constantly stain college football in a nation that focuses strongly on greed and ego, rather than education and preparing for a better tomorrow.

In clarity, the committees and trustees allow too much elbowroom, and it unfortunately tarnishes football programs. By an ugly controversy shamefully destroying the beauty of college sports, a disoriented NCAA is tremendously in disarray. Stories about improper benefits given to student athletes are pathetic, but as long as the house of academia and overseers refuse to address the issue and integrate a new policy, agents will be a convenience to destitute players. Weren’t they aware of this ongoing ignominy a long time ago? Isn’t it humiliating and disgusting that an agent provided impermissible benefits.

Yes.

As it seems, everyone responsible was dismissive and stoic. With the recent chatter about agents paying college athletes, as NCAA infractions have become a frequent pattern in college sports, outrageously the Sports Illustrated article, “Confessions of an Agent” is the most stunning story of investigative journalism that finally brings out the truth about unscrupulous agents.

There is no conceivable way that the NCAA can prevent agents from manipulating the lives of kids, unless it constitutes a bylaw to govern sports agents. As long as agents are allowed to manipulate and provide extra benefits, allegations will come to light and turn out to be an ugly situation. By the time athletes veer into their college careers as top-notched stars, the defiance and negligence from agents baits the young minds of unaware student athletes.

It isn’t often, especially in sports, that an athlete rejects millions from an agent. Many athletes have departed high school, as gifted players and couldn’t afford to buy expensive SUVs, spacious homes or even support their families, but attained wealth and happiness by receiving improper benefits. Like the rest of us, athletes are trying to find an easy way in life, when really there is no such thing as having an easy way in life.

Embedded in much controversy for all the insanity involving sports agents who lavished student athletes with improprieties, agents lose all respect for sadly dictating how players live their lives. For instance, crooked businessmen enrich their popularity and become richer by gipping players. That is like snatching candy from a baby. The lack of stability is awful in college sports, and agents contribute to the troubles.

Even though these flaws have been exposed for decades, the most current disclosure of multiple claims made by Luchs is shocking. He said he paid players and provided extra benefits before leaving the business, but we haven’t uncovered a shred of truth. By confessing to the world and telling a well-known source that he paid players during his career gives all the credibility to Luchs.

For all the talk about infractions, Luchs’ colossal admission of guilt is flimsy. Sorry, I am not buying the lame excuses one bit, and you shouldn’t either. Much of the blame falls on Luchs’ foolishness, after deciding to give players money while college athletes were in the spotlight during their college careers.

Here’s Luchs’ defense.

“A lot of these kids didn’t even have enough money to buy groceries,” he said during one of his radio interviews. “I’m not trying to paint myself as Mother Teresa, but clearly, at least in my case, the money served a purpose.”

Did he use the Mother Teresa analogy? Indeed. However, it’s a sensible comparison in a way. But essentially, Luchs is not Mother Teresa. He is, nonetheless, a buffoon and is just as liable as these athletes themselves, matured enough to know the difference between wrongdoings and good deeds.


Surrounded by the negative publicity after stepping down from the business, Luchs is now making headlines because he satisfied and pampered players. He gave players millions of dollars, more than enough to feed and nourish their impoverished families. But for years now, you should have had a nagging suspicion that Leaf, the biggest quarterback bust in NFL history, was up to something no good. Leaf was the centerpiece of Washington State’s 1997 Rose Bowl team, but turned into an absolute disappointment when he became an NFL quarterback and failed miserably in San Diego.

As the ex-agent alleges in a first-person article this week, the story and accusations have the media buzzing. All of a sudden, Leaf is a wanted man again, or should be at least. Decades ago, Luchs said he gave Leaf more than $10,000 in regular payments of $500 and said his wannabe client repaid a bulk of the money after he signed with the San Diego Chargers.

In reality, Luchs believe schools need to pay athletes megabucks. Sorry, but they are college students, not professionals. The general idea sends a bad message to students, who are seeking an education or a rewarding career.

When it comes to college students, agents offering money only encourages kids to try out for sports. Maybe even the geeks on campus would play football and begin participating in sports activities in high school to be regarded as a top prospect in the nation. It would be folly to suggest that students will earn cash to perform in a sport. Doesn’t that take away from the integrity? Absolutely.

The transition to paying players won’t solve a damn thing. However, of course, classes will be overly populated and more stars will emerge into premier stars. If nothing else, it would take away from the enthusiasm and spirit.

My advice to the NCAA is not to listen to Luchs’ absurdity. In all honesty, he’s only saying this because he feels sorry for players and himself, looking to clean up his reputation and put the madness behind him. At certain times, we can speculate that this game is concerned about greed and ego. No one is thinking about emphasizing the importance of education.

As long as nobody really minds that agents have a large influence on students in a wrenched era, the existence of agents will continuously outrage people and leave us leery of these sleazy businessmen. For years, we’ve witnessed infractions and sanctions cast a cloud over schools that violated NCAA rules. If college athletes were to get paid as a cure for minimizing transgressions, then they wouldn’t be known as amateurs but professionals in college.

If so, pay the students for studying constantly and attending classes in study halls, too. Would that stop sports agents from tarnishing an entire program? Oh sure, blame it on the kids and trustees. It’s funny how agents are the victims. But if anything, they are frauds.

So when Luchs said he paid more than 30 players cash and offered free meals and concert tickets, it made it clear that players are getting paid today. The hypocrisy occurs in the realm of America’s most famous sport, because no one cares to rectify the situation and this is dismantling the culture and the honesty of the game.

Because we are hearing the latest about an ugly scandal that exists today, the names are unmasking after Luchs confessed. Among those names, former USC wide receiver R. Jay Soward admitted to accepting Luchs’ benefits.

“I would do it again. I have four sons, and if somebody offered my son money in college and it meant he didn’t have to be hungry,” Soward said. “I would tell him to take it.”

In all likelihood, I’ll take it too. Why not? Someone offered it to me. Still, it doesn’t make it right.

The NCAA took a survey and it showed merely 25 of the 119 Football Subdivision programs earning money in the 2008 and 2009 seasons. The problem with student athletes is that they want gifts for a little bit of nothing. These days, everyone has to earn his or her stuff. Nothing should be given to anyone.

Consider it cheating now in college athletics, with a multitude of sordid agents building a relationship with universities and athletes. No one cares about NCAA rules. There’s too much money involved, so student athletes treat the industry like it is a business and not a university.

Right now, it doesn’t even seem logical to pay student athletes in the midst of financial struggles during an economic crisis. Universities aren’t financially stable to make payments to players. The shortage of payroll is financially affecting low-class schools that would likely have to pay a similar rate in salary like the richer schools.

Where is the money in the battered economy? Schools have no extra money to waste on college students. And in a disoriented system, agents have no business associating with student athletes.

If Ryan Leaf Was Drafted By The Colts, Wouldn't He Be More Successful?

The word that involves four letters (and sometimes five, if you add an “s” at the end) that is called “bust,” always comes up when you hear the name of Ryan Leaf. It really fits actually. Let’s compare the analogies with the quarterback picked before Leaf in the 1998 NFL Draft:

Peyton Manning is to superstar while Ryan Leaf is to ____? What? I’ll tell you what, here’s the answer, teacher: Ryan Leaf is to bust. But seriously, I have to say, I really don’t think it could be entirely Leaf’s fault. The biggest buzz was running around of who the Indianapolis Colts would pick.

Ryan Leaf or Peyton Manning?

Of course, we all know the Colts drafted Peyton Manning, and everyone is surely proud that they didn’t acquire Ryan Leaf. But hey, what if Ryan Leaf was drafted by the Colts? Sure, I know, Todd Fleming did a fabulous piece of that, but it was a humor piece.

My piece, it’s real.

I’ll analyze the data as my stats will be observed from ProFootballReference.com. Although I won’t be the complicated data-mastered genius like Zach Fein in his amazing articles, I’ll try my best. To all of you who are reading this, I hope you will be impressed as I dig deep.

First, let me tell you what I’ll be doing. I’ll analyze the stats from year-to-year for each quarterbacks. I’ll start with Ryan Leaf, and talk about the stats some of his teammates had around him, and I’ll do the same with Manning.

So let’s do this people.

If Ryan Leaf was drafted by the Colts in 1998, would he have more success?

Let’s find out.

1998

Ryan Leaf

Ryan Leaf started only nine games in his first season as starter for the San Diego Chargers. In his first game, he was impressive like Peyton Manning in his first game. But after the first game, things got a little shaky for Leaf as he had truly one of the worst statistical seasons I have ever seen for a quarterback.

He passed for 1,289 yards along with two touchdowns and 15 interceptions with a 39.0 quarterback rating. Yes, that is very bad. The Chargers also went 5-11 that year, surprisingly better than Manning’s Colts who went 3-13, although Manning had the better year.

But with Leaf’s poor performance, what about his supporting cast. Did they help him out at all? The Charger’s leading rusher was Natrone Means with 883 rushing yards and five touchdowns including a 4.2 yards per carry average.

Well, that was okay, but what about the receiving cast? His leading receiver Charlie Jones with 699 receiving yards for three touchdowns. His second leading receiver was Freddie Jones with 602 receiving yards and two touchdowns.

There really wasn’t a strong supporting cast, not at all. Their defense wasn’t that strong as well as none of their players reached the 100 or even the 95-tackle mark. The leading tackler was Junior Seau with 92, with Rodney Harrison at second with 89. Third? 59 tackles for Charles Dimry.

Their defense allowed 342 points that year, too, while their offense produced 239. It truly wasn’t a good supporting cast that Ryan Leaf had in mind, so wouldn’t Ryan Leaf be better off with Manning’s cast? Let’s take a look at number 18’s.

Peyton Manning

Peyton Manning played all 16 games, unlike Ryan Leaf, who played seven games less. Although Manning and his Colts went 3-13, worse than the worse quarterback’s team a 5-11 record, Manning still played well that year. He passed for 3,739 with 26 touchdowns and 28 interceptions, including a 71.2 quarterback rating.

But even though Manning had a very impressive 26 touchdowns, the 28 interceptions affected him. But he’ll improve. But despite the impressive rookie year, did his supporting cast live up to expectations to help their new face of the franchise? Let’s take a look.

Their leading rusher was Marshall Faulk, who was in his last year with the Colts, who had 1,319 rushing yards, six touchdowns, and a 4.1 yard per carry average. Pretty impressive, huh? Yes, I thought so.

But what about the receivers? I was about go to that, but good question. Manning’s leading receiver was, well, Marshall Faulk, who had 86 receptions for 908 yards and four touchdowns. Wow, that is great for a running back, don’t you think? Their second leading receiver for Manning was Marvin Harrison with 59 grabs for 776 yards and seven touchdowns.

Manning did have a pretty good supporting cast with the receiving, surely better than the San Diego Chargers cast. But even though Manning’s cast beat out Leaf’s cast in those categories, Leaf did beat Manning in the defensive supporting cast.

The Colts leading tackler was Jason Belser with 76 tackles, Jeff Burris at second with 57, and Robert Blackmon with 52. So although Manning’s cast did somewhat worse than Leaf’s cast on defense, Manning’s team was overall better.

Let’s check out comparisons from the year of 1998:

It’s a good review of the year of 1998, let’s move on to 1999.

1999

Due to Ryan Leaf not playing during the 1999 season, there is no need for a comparison here. Let’s move on to the year of 2000.

2000

Ryan Leaf

Ah, the new millennium. Those Y2K parties feel like yesterday, don’t they? This was Ryan Leaf’s best season in his wasteful career in the National Football League.

Leaf had thrown for 1,883 yards with eleven touchdowns and 18 interceptions, including a 56.2 quarterback rating. I see why the word “bust” always comes up when his name is mentioned. Leaf also started another nine games for the second time. Let’s see what his supporting cast has in store for him.

His Chargers also went 1-15, unlike the Manning’s Colts and their 10-6 record.

Their leading rusher was Terrell Fletcher, who ran for 384 rushing yards, three touchdowns, a 3.3 yards per carry average. I have to say that is just plain horrible. It’s just inexcusable. This is not what you want out of your leading rusher.

Let’s go and see what the receivers have.

Their leading receiver was Jeff Graham, who had caught 55 receptions for 907 yards and four touchdowns. Their second leader was Freddie Jones, who had caught 71 catches for 766 yards and five touchdowns.

That was pretty impressive, surely much better than what we compared in 1998. The defense somewhat improved as well as Junior Seau was the leader with 103 tackles along with Rodney Harrison at 101 tackles. Third is Mike Dumas with 64 tackles. That was an improvement, greatly, and Seau and Harrison still held the lead in the Top Two.

Leaf’s supporting cast did improve, but let’s see how Manning’s cast did. And speaking of Peyton, where the heck is he? Oh right:

Peyton Manning

Manning did outstanding for the Colts in 2000, throwing for 4,413 yards with 33 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, including a 94.7 quarterback rating. Manning was very impressive as he was evolving into an NFL icon, and one for hometown of Indianapolis.

With Manning’s thrilling performance that year, let’s see how his supporting cast played out with the deal.

Their leading rusher was Edgerrin James, who had ran for 1,709 yards with 13 touchdowns and a 4.4 yards per carry average. James surely had a Pro Bowl invite and was outstanding that year. He ran 1,400 yards more than little old Terrell Fletcher. Man man man, it’s clear that the Colts rushing performance was better than Leaf’s cast.

How about the receiving cast? Their leading receiver was Marvin Harrison with 102 catches for 1,413 and 14 touchdowns. Looks like there’s another man joining the trio of Pro Bowl invitees. Their second leading receiver was Jerome Pathon, who had caught 50 catches for 646 yards with three touchdowns. Nice! Overall, the receiving cast of Manning’s Colts was better than Leaf’s Chargers.

The defense somewhat faired evenly as their leading tackler was Mike Peterson with 104, then Jason Belser with 80, and lastly Jeff Burris with 69. It’s kind of fair actually, but I think the Chargers defense was slightly better.

Okay, so now we know how about of these casts play out. Manning’s cast was certainly much better than Leaf’s again, so let’s take a look at the comparisons chart:

Sorry about the no room guys, but I think you know what the defensive stats are. And also, sorry about the error in the chart as well, I accidentally mixed up the receiving cast parts, but I think you guys will pick that up quickly and know what happened!

Now you know 2000, let’s move to our final year of 2001.

2001

Ryan Leaf

This was Ryan Leaf’s last year in the NFL. After that, we’ll break down if Leaf could have succeeded better with the Colts’ cast.

Ryan Leaf was with a new team now, the Dallas Cowboys. He was involved in a horrible rotation, and yes, he was horrible too. Leaf threw for 494 passing yards along with one touchdown and three interceptions including a 57.7 quarterback rating, a career-high. Leaf had career-lows in touchdowns, interceptions, and passing yards. He had a career-high in passing rating, which is very bad because it is 57.7 for God’s sake.

Let’s see how his supporting cast did, if they even supported him at all even.

Their leading rusher was Emmitt Smith with 1,021 rushing yards, three touchdowns, and a 3.9 yards per carry average. I think that faired out good as it was Leaf’s first 1,000-yard rusher that supported him in his career. How about them receiving boys?

Well, boy, their receiving leader was Rocket Ismail with 53 catches for 834 yards and two touchdowns. Ismail is truly just one heck of a beast player, so don’t blame him for his performance because he was amazing for his entire career. We then move to Joey Galloway, who had caught 52 passes for 699 yards and three touchdowns. Good job Joey!

The receiving was good for Leaf as he had superstars, but he didn’t use them properly and he failed with them. How about his cast with defense?

Their leading tackler was Dan Nyugen with 91 tackles, Dexter Coakley with 72, and Darren Woodson with 71. It wasn’t good for Leaf as his 2000 team defense was much better than this. Looks like Leaf wasted his time in big D, and he wasn’t wanted after the season.

Let’s see how NFL icon Manning played out in 2001.

Peyton Manning

Manning had an okay year, with 4,131 yards, 26 touchdowns and 23 interceptions, and a 84.1 quarterback rating. It was a downgrade for Manning because 2000 was so much better. Hey, at least it was better than Ryan Leaf, who would probably die for those statistics.

But even though with those Ryan-Leaf-would-die-for-stats, let’s see how the supporting cast did with those.

Their leading rusher was Dominic Rhodes with 1,104 rushing yards, nine touchdowns, and a 4.7 yards per carry average. Very impressive for a guy who had to fill in some shoes for an all-star running back who went down with an injury. Very nice, very nice indeed.

The rushing cast was good, what about Manning’s receiving cast? I was just getting to that, thank you very much. Their leading receiver was Marvin Harrison with 109 catches for 1,524 yards and 15 touchdowns. Man oh man, another fabulous season for the future-Hall-of-Famer, who would have a league-record, 143 receptions in 2002. Their second leading receiver was Marcus Pollard with 47 receptions for 739 yards and eight touchdowns. Nice for a tight end, don’t you think? I think so, and dude, you should too.

Very impressive overall, all better than the Cowboys. How about that defense? Well, no, Dallas beat them to it as Indy’s leading tackler was Rob Morris with 84, Marcus Washington with 74, and Chad Cota with 73. Not what I would expect, but overall, the Colts won the battle.

2001 was surely better than the Cowboys overall, and right now, I don’t think there is no need for a chart right now. I think I have had it with them. Let’s conclude this because this article is getting too long. It’s already passed the 2,000 word milestone, so yeah, you know it’s long.

Thank god for Ryan Leaf only playing three years in the NFL, or else I would have a 5,000 word article and no one in hell would read this.

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