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Moore: Cowboys offense is indeed too Romo-friendly; Danny White explains what needs fixing
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By David Moore , Staff Writer Contact David Mooreon Twitter
DavidMooreDMN
Put a frog in boiling water and it will jump out.
Put that same frog in cold water and gradually turn up the heat, and it will sit in that pot until it boils to death.
Danny White cites this anecdote when giving his opinion on the Cowboys' plight in Tony Romo's absence.
"That has happened to this offense, I think, over the course of six or eight years,'' the former Cowboys quarterback said. "The thing that Tony does better than anyone in the league, in my opinion, is improvise. But it's become a crutch.
"It's become their offense.''
The phrase "Romo-friendly'' has become part of Cowboys vernacular in recent years. But in tailoring the offense to fit the skills of No. 9, have the Cowboys made it so specific that backups have little room to operate? Have coaches and players put so much faith in Romo's ability to bail them out that it has stripped this offense of the timing routes and blitz pickups that are essential tools of success for the majority of quarterbacks?
Owner Jerry Jones, executive vice president Stephen Jones and head coach Jason Garrett have discussed this topic in the wake of a 4-12 season. Those conversations continue.
These three, along with offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, must determine if the issue is the scheme or the players they have selected to fill-in behind Romo.
"Those are the things we'll be going over,'' Stephen Jones said.
'Silly comment'
As one quarterback after another failed to win in Romo's absence this season, it raised the question as to whether the offense had become too Romo-centric.
"It's kind of a silly comment, to be honest with you,'' Romo said. "When players can do something well, they're going to make a system work.
"My job is to make any system work. It doesn't matter whose system it is.''
Systems evolve. They breathe and adapt to fit the strengths of individuals. No one can deny that has happened with Romo.
But he maintains success is about execution, not evolution.
"Ninety-five percent of coaches are doing the same thing,'' Romo said. "It's just a matter of players going out and executing and doing things faster, doing things better.
"We're not doing anything different, or that much different, than a lot of other teams. And then the stuff that you sprinkle in that is different, those are the week-to-week adjustments that are made.''
What White sees
White is more than a casual observer. He has served as the color analyst for Cowboys broadcasts on the Compass Radio Network for the last five years. This is what he sees:
Let's say Romo recognizes man-to-man coverage and has the primary receiver run a 10-yard hook route. The receiver fails to get open initially. Rather than immediately settle for the second option, Romo moves around in the pocket to buy time.
If the primary receiver comes open, he makes the throw. If someone else breaks open he goes there. A structured play has become an elaborate scramble drill.
"It's a successful play because Tony bailed everyone out,'' White said. "That has happened, in my opinion, over and over to the point it has become a major point of the Cowboys' offense. They rely on Tony to do that.
"Now, can someone come in from an offense someplace else and run that in one or two weeks or even a year? I think it's pretty hard.''
The numbers suggest it's exceedingly hard. Matt Cassel, Brandon Weeden and Kellen Moore combined for a record of 1-11 in Romo's absence. Backup quarterbacks have gone just 7-20 in this offense since Romo took over as the starter during the 2008 season.
There's an art to the receiver working the cornerback to get the defender's hips turned before the receiver plants his foot to come back for the ball. It's not that the Cowboys' receivers fail to do this. But when they don't execute their routes crisply, they can still win the battle thanks to Romo.
Watch New England's Tom Brady and Denver's Peyton Manning on Sunday afternoon. They will make one timing-route throw after another. They will take a five-step drop and release the ball when the receiver's back is turned to them.
White did this when he was the Cowboys' starting quarterback and earlier when he backed up Roger Staubach. It was called a 15-yard silent route.
"You don't see much of that in the Cowboys' offense,'' White said. "In fact, I haven't seen any of it.''
Another thing you don't see is a hot route. When the blitz comes, how often do you see Romo release the ball when his heel touches the ground on his third step? Rarely. He usually has a hitch or moves to his left or right to buy a little more time.
Romo isn't the only quarterback who operates this way. Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers falls into the same category. Why risk throwing to a receiver with his back turned when you can buy a little extra time to make sure he sees the ball coming his way?
But how many quarterbacks improvise and still throw the ball downfield like Romo and Rodgers?
"There's a lot more to it, and I know Tony would put up a good argument with me and so would Jason,'' White said. "But that's what I think has happened to their offense.''
Why change?
It's easy to understand how the offense has reached this point. The Cowboys have had success with Romo. Why change?
You change because Romo will be 36 in three months and is coming off a season in which he missed 12 games. You change because this offense has shown it can't win without Romo.
You put timing routes back into the offense. You emphasize hot reads on the blitz.
"That's the challenge,'' White said. "I think what you do is you gradually work back to a traditional-type offense. Tony may have to get a little bit uncomfortable, at least in practice, and work on some of these things, throwing these timing routes and blitz reads and getting rid of the ball quickly. There needs to be more of that.
"I think that's what they've got to do now. They've got to start working back toward a little more traditional passing game.''
Romo will tell you systems aren't about an individual. He's right. But there's no denying this offense has evolved around his unique skills.
On another note, science has busted the frog theory. The animal will jump out of water as it heats up rather than boil to death.
Will the Cowboys do the same with their offense?
l
By David Moore , Staff Writer Contact David Mooreon Twitter
DavidMooreDMNPut a frog in boiling water and it will jump out.
Put that same frog in cold water and gradually turn up the heat, and it will sit in that pot until it boils to death.
Danny White cites this anecdote when giving his opinion on the Cowboys' plight in Tony Romo's absence.
"That has happened to this offense, I think, over the course of six or eight years,'' the former Cowboys quarterback said. "The thing that Tony does better than anyone in the league, in my opinion, is improvise. But it's become a crutch.
"It's become their offense.''
The phrase "Romo-friendly'' has become part of Cowboys vernacular in recent years. But in tailoring the offense to fit the skills of No. 9, have the Cowboys made it so specific that backups have little room to operate? Have coaches and players put so much faith in Romo's ability to bail them out that it has stripped this offense of the timing routes and blitz pickups that are essential tools of success for the majority of quarterbacks?
Owner Jerry Jones, executive vice president Stephen Jones and head coach Jason Garrett have discussed this topic in the wake of a 4-12 season. Those conversations continue.
These three, along with offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, must determine if the issue is the scheme or the players they have selected to fill-in behind Romo.
"Those are the things we'll be going over,'' Stephen Jones said.
'Silly comment'
As one quarterback after another failed to win in Romo's absence this season, it raised the question as to whether the offense had become too Romo-centric.
"It's kind of a silly comment, to be honest with you,'' Romo said. "When players can do something well, they're going to make a system work.
"My job is to make any system work. It doesn't matter whose system it is.''
Systems evolve. They breathe and adapt to fit the strengths of individuals. No one can deny that has happened with Romo.
But he maintains success is about execution, not evolution.
"Ninety-five percent of coaches are doing the same thing,'' Romo said. "It's just a matter of players going out and executing and doing things faster, doing things better.
"We're not doing anything different, or that much different, than a lot of other teams. And then the stuff that you sprinkle in that is different, those are the week-to-week adjustments that are made.''
What White sees
White is more than a casual observer. He has served as the color analyst for Cowboys broadcasts on the Compass Radio Network for the last five years. This is what he sees:
Let's say Romo recognizes man-to-man coverage and has the primary receiver run a 10-yard hook route. The receiver fails to get open initially. Rather than immediately settle for the second option, Romo moves around in the pocket to buy time.
If the primary receiver comes open, he makes the throw. If someone else breaks open he goes there. A structured play has become an elaborate scramble drill.
"It's a successful play because Tony bailed everyone out,'' White said. "That has happened, in my opinion, over and over to the point it has become a major point of the Cowboys' offense. They rely on Tony to do that.
"Now, can someone come in from an offense someplace else and run that in one or two weeks or even a year? I think it's pretty hard.''
The numbers suggest it's exceedingly hard. Matt Cassel, Brandon Weeden and Kellen Moore combined for a record of 1-11 in Romo's absence. Backup quarterbacks have gone just 7-20 in this offense since Romo took over as the starter during the 2008 season.
There's an art to the receiver working the cornerback to get the defender's hips turned before the receiver plants his foot to come back for the ball. It's not that the Cowboys' receivers fail to do this. But when they don't execute their routes crisply, they can still win the battle thanks to Romo.
Watch New England's Tom Brady and Denver's Peyton Manning on Sunday afternoon. They will make one timing-route throw after another. They will take a five-step drop and release the ball when the receiver's back is turned to them.
White did this when he was the Cowboys' starting quarterback and earlier when he backed up Roger Staubach. It was called a 15-yard silent route.
"You don't see much of that in the Cowboys' offense,'' White said. "In fact, I haven't seen any of it.''
Another thing you don't see is a hot route. When the blitz comes, how often do you see Romo release the ball when his heel touches the ground on his third step? Rarely. He usually has a hitch or moves to his left or right to buy a little more time.
Romo isn't the only quarterback who operates this way. Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers falls into the same category. Why risk throwing to a receiver with his back turned when you can buy a little extra time to make sure he sees the ball coming his way?
But how many quarterbacks improvise and still throw the ball downfield like Romo and Rodgers?
"There's a lot more to it, and I know Tony would put up a good argument with me and so would Jason,'' White said. "But that's what I think has happened to their offense.''
Why change?
It's easy to understand how the offense has reached this point. The Cowboys have had success with Romo. Why change?
You change because Romo will be 36 in three months and is coming off a season in which he missed 12 games. You change because this offense has shown it can't win without Romo.
You put timing routes back into the offense. You emphasize hot reads on the blitz.
"That's the challenge,'' White said. "I think what you do is you gradually work back to a traditional-type offense. Tony may have to get a little bit uncomfortable, at least in practice, and work on some of these things, throwing these timing routes and blitz reads and getting rid of the ball quickly. There needs to be more of that.
"I think that's what they've got to do now. They've got to start working back toward a little more traditional passing game.''
Romo will tell you systems aren't about an individual. He's right. But there's no denying this offense has evolved around his unique skills.
On another note, science has busted the frog theory. The animal will jump out of water as it heats up rather than boil to death.
Will the Cowboys do the same with their offense?
