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Tony Romo remains one of the all-time Dallas Cowboys greats. While somewhat maligned for his inability to get America’s Team back to the Super Bowl, his career return of 34,183 yards and 248 touchdown passes are remarkable.
Injuries derailed his progress on multiple occasions, particularly in his upper body. He couldn’t necessarily be depended on from a fitness perspective, but on the field, he was the perfect Cowboys QB.
Not since the days of Troy Aikman had Dallas been able to lean on a supremely gifted leader like Romo, and boy did it lean on him at certain times.
His career is filled with comeback victories where the franchise was able to claim a win purely because of Romo’s brilliance.
Unfortunately for Romo and the Dallas Cowboys, seldom did these moments come in the playoffs. His 2-4 record in postseason matchups is a blot on his copybook.
Nobody holds it against him though, and it’s hard to imagine any other QB could have taken those Cowboys teams to the big dance.
With his career now perhaps even more notable in the world of sports broadcasting, Romo remains a legend in Dallas. He can hold his head high for giving those fans some of their greatest moments in the modern era.
But just which 5 of Tony Romo’s single-handed victories for the Dallas Cowboys were the best?
5. September 2014 vs the St. Louis Rams
By September 2014, the toll professional football had taken on Tony Romo’s body was starting to show. He headed into this early-season clash with the Rams with question marks over his future.
He conjured up some of his old magic to carry the Cowboys to a huge comeback victory.
The Cowboys were 21 points down before clawing back a 37-34 win thanks to Romo’s magic.
It was his 21st fourth-quarter comeback win for the Cowboys, which set a new franchise record. The highlight was a third down in the fourth quarter where the QB produced a perfect spin move to evade the pass rush and slide for a first.
His 68-yard pass to Dez Bryant was picture perfect and brought Dallas back into the game.
His stat-line read 217 yards and two touchdowns with 18 completions, but it was the style of game he played which was so vital for Dallas.
4. November 2008 vs Washington
A trip to Washington has never really been easy for the Cowboys, but the 14-10 victory from November 2008 lives long in the memory of Tony Romo fans.
With his pinkie finger in a splint, the quarterback had to fight through the pain barrier to produce a brilliant comeback win for America’s Team.
He was under pressure and struggling, as well as being on the receiving end of some rather harsh media criticism.
The QB responded with a beautiful 25-yard pass to Martellus Bennett for a touchdown, which handed his team a pivotal fourth quarter lead.
This was not vintage Romo, but the fact he had to battle against injury and the circumstance makes it a memorable victory.
3. September 2012 vs the New York Giants
The New York Giants were the benchmark in the NFC at this point. They were the defending Super Bowl champions and had a dominant defense, as well as Eli Manning in his prime.
Nobody gave the Cowboys a chance when they had to face the defending champs early on in the 2012 season.
However, Romo put the team on his back and threw three touchdown passes as Dallas stunned the NFL.
He threw for 307 yards in total on the night and took the spotlight away from the Giants.
After the Giants had eliminated Dallas from the playoffs the previous year, nobody was giving Jerry Jones’ team a chance.
Romo carried the offense and helped DeMarco Murray to rush for 129 yards.
He made key passes on third down, including a 15-yard completion to Kevin Ogletree. He controlled the game and ran it for Dallas. It was a masterclass.
2. January 2015 vs the Detroit Lions
One of Romo’s best moments came late in his career as he engineered a brilliant second-half comeback against the Detroit Lions.
With the Cowboys rarely tasting success in the postseason during his tenure, recording a victory here was pivotal, especially as a slow start left Dallas facing another season-ending embarrassment.
Detroit’s defense was fearsome and it threatened the Cowboys starter on every play. He was also fighting against himself, with critics labelling him a big-game flop.
Romo hit the deck six times as he was targeted by the Lions’ top-ranked defense, but he got up and threw for 293 yards.
He completed 19 of his 31 passes as he manufactured a comeback after being 14-0 down in the first half.
A 76-yard touchdown pass with less than two minutes to go in the first half set Dallas on the comeback trail.
A 43-yarder to Dez Bryant followed, which put DeMarco Murray in position to barrel into the endzone from the 1-yard line.
The dying minutes saw Romo lead his team down the field for a game-winning drive, which culminated in a beautiful back-shoulder throw to Terrance Williams, but he dropped the ball.
Romo wasn’t deterred though. He went back to Williams on third down and drilled a throw right down the throat of his receiver, who couldn’t fail to catch it a second time. It proved to be the game-winning touchdown.
1. September 2011 vs the San Francisco 49ers
Many consider this to be Tony Romo’s best game as a Dallas Cowboy.
Going 14-0 down to a strong 49ers team is never advisable, but he took the challenge on.
He started the comeback with a fine drive which ended in a 53-yard TD pass to Miles Austin.
Disaster then struck. A hit appeared to leave him with a cracked rib and possible punctured lung. With his team in need, the medical team told him that he wouldn’t feature in the game again.
After being taken to the bench, Romo sat and watched as San Francisco went into a 21-14 lead.
He ignored the trainer’s advice and went back on the field. He was immediately sacked and the crowd fell silent.
Romo battled on, his faced grimacing in pain, but he delivered two scoring drives to wrap up a memorable comeback and arguably his best moment as a Cowboy. This was the day he was mentioned in the same breath as Troy Aikman. He had sacrificed himself for the Dallas Cowboys to claim a win over their fiercest rivals.
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