Romo Rewriting The Narrative

We live in the golden age of takes. This isn’t even up for debate (see what I did there?). The 21st century’s poster boy for overheated discussion that’s rarely, if ever based in the reality of the living world? Tony Romo. If you don’t think Romo is a choker, you think he’s the most unfairly maligned athlete of the technological age.

My take? There is reason Romo is a nine-year starter. He is really, really good. But there’s also a reason for his bumbling persona. He’s had a knack for ill-timed turnovers. This brings us to the rarely discussed underbelly of everyone’s least favorite dueling narratives, the confluence of “Romo lol” vs. “Romo why can’t you see the greatness.” Romo’s mistakes have long been magnified by a margin for error that’s hovered somewhere between “zero” and “zero point zero.” Jerry Jones, god bless his heart, wants to win more than just about any man in sports. He’s also made a habit of constructing flawed rosters, ones that place an enormous burden on the quarterback’s shoulders.

This has created an environment where Cowboys seasons often come down to one game, and those games down to one play. Shine a spotlight that bright on anyone not named Michael Jordan, and there will be failure on a grand stage. The paradox of Romo is that, yes, he has “choked” — whatever that means — many times when everyone was watching, but wouldn’t have been in the position to “choke” in the first place if not for his own excellent play. Play that took many mediocre teams from the land of the 6-10s to the doorstep of the playoffs.

What we’re seeing in 2014 is a Romo who finally has help, a Romo whose every last pass isn’t under a white-hot microscope. What’s resulted is an MVP-caliber season, and a Cowboys team that won’t be playing for its playoff life in Week 17, but a first-round bye. The owner of a 32:8 TD:INT ratio on the year, Romo owns a 10:0 mark in three wins since Dallas’ Thanksgiving shellacking at the hands of the Eagles. He leads the league in completion percentage, (70.3), yards per attempt (8.49) and QB rating (114.4). He is free to be Tony Romo, exceptional quarterback, and not Tony Romo, Atlas.

Barring a Super Bowl title, Romo will never get his proper due. That’s life in the era of “is Eli Manning elite?” panel discussions. But you don’t have to dig deep beneath the surface to find this isn’t a “new Romo,” but the quarterback he’s always been. This may be his best season, but who knows how many more like it there could have been with just a little more slack in the rope.

Five Things That Went According To Plan In Week 16

Russell Wilson’s continued maturation. Wilson detonated a neutron bomb on a Cardinals defense allowing the 12th fewest fantasy points to opposing quarterbacks, completing 20-of-31 passes for 339 yards and two scores while adding 6/88/1 as a rusher. That comes out to an absurd 39.8 fantasy points, and a humbling of the highest order for an Arizona team in free fall. Turning into a legitimate superstar before our very eyes, Wilson enters Week 17 with the fifth most single-season rushing yards all time for a quarterback (842), and as only the second QB in NFL history with multiple 300-passing/80-rushing yard efforts. If Wilson is nice, maybe he’ll decide to give Alex Okafor’s soul back.

Ryan Lindley being Ryan Lindley. The Cardinals entered Sunday in the driver’s seat for the NFC’s No. 1 seed. They exited it (still) pining for the return of journeyman Drew Stanton at quarterback. Lindley was what his résumé said he was, a third-year sixth rounder with a career 51.4 completion percentage and 4.3 YPA. Lindley completed just 18-of-44 passes (40.9 percent) against the league’s best defense, never coming close to throwing a touchdown while tossing a pick alongside many other near misses. Lindley doesn’t belong on an NFL field, so it’s a bit curious genuinely-amazing coach Bruce Arians refuses to change up his offense, dialing up deep ball after deep ball. The Cardinals are in deep trouble even with Stanton under center, but won’t have a playoff prayer if they have to keep rolling with Lindley.

Odell Beckham declaring for the presidency. Beckham scorched the Rams’ scorched-earth defense for 8/148/2, bringing his line as a starter to 69/1,014/8 through eight games. Those monumental numbers extrapolate to 138/2,028/16 over a full season, though no extrapolation is necessary to illustrated just how special Beckham has been as a first-year pro. He’s the first rookie in league history with at least 75 catches, 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns, and first rookie with at least 8/130/1 in three-straight games. For his 2014 finale, he gets an Eagles secondary that would have trouble slowing me and Evan Silva if we had an NFL quarterback delivering us the ball.

Andy Reid under-utilizing Jamaal Charles. With everything on the line for Reid’s 8-6 squad, he gave Charles just 14 touches as Alex Smith was somehow allowed to throw the ball 45 times. Charles has averaged 15.2 touches over his past five games, a span in which the Chiefs have gone 1-4, and all but punched their ticket out of the playoffs. Reid has flirted with doing the right thing the past two years — running the ball, featuring his best players — but all too often fallen back on his bad habits. Too many passes, and too much aversion to simply getting the ball to the players capable of paying the bills.

Teddy Bridgewater continuing to impress. Facing one of the league’s better pass defenses on the road, Bridgewater completed 19-of-26 passes for 259 yards (9.96 YPA), two touchdowns and an interception. Bridgewater’s pick was a pass that should have been caught by Matt Asiata, while his first score was a dime to Greg Jennings. The owner of a 9:5 TD:INT ratio, 69 completion percentage and 8.09 YPA over his past five starts, Bridgewater will head into the offseason on a groundswell of momentum, and as the only rookie quarterback to make a positive impact this season. Draft Twitter was right, after all.

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Five Things That Didn’t Go According To Plan In Week 16

The Saints offering up something other than comprehensive disappointment. The bottom fell out on an already-disappointing season in the most unfathomable way possible: A fifth-straight home loss. This, for a team that went 8-0 in the Superdome last season, and has enjoyed a home-field advantage so great it’s obscured just how good they’ve also been on the road during the Drew Brees/Sean Payton era. An autopsy of the Saints’ failed 2014 will reveal a shaky offensive line, a defense that fell apart, a skill corps that never sorted itself out and a superstar tight end who was not the same as he played through a shoulder injury. Last but not least is a HOF quarterback who seemed to be slowly coming back to the pack. Few teams will have a tougher search for answers this offseason.

Andrew Luck winning fantasy championships. With the Colts’ defense laying out a welcome mat and Luck’s “weapons” literally and figuratively dropping the ball in the absence of T.Y. Hilton, Luck threw for fewer than 250 yards for just the third time all season, and had his first scoreless game of 2014. Part of the problem was incentives — the Colts didn’t have many to play well beyond, you know, pride. But it was still a concerning performance for a team that’s been heading in the wrong direction, and a dagger for fantasy owners who have been riding Luck’s dominance all year.

Jimmy Clausen going off the rails in his first start since his nightmarish 2010. The stats were unimpressive — 23-of-39 for 181 yards (4.6 YPA), two touchdowns and one pick — but didn’t tell the full story of Clausen’s Jay Cutler relief appearance. The Bears dropped no fewer than seven passes, while Clausen’s pick came on a hail mary. He held his own against one of the league’s best defenses, and has a better Week 17 matchup in the Vikings. Clausen isn’t going to save Marc Trestman’s job, or earn any serious interest for 2015, but another competent performance could ensure Cutler is sent packing.

Joique Bell dominating the Bears’ packed-in defense. The linchpin of many a daily team, Bell spent the entire first quarter wearing an oversized coat as the Lions gave work to Reggie Bush, George Winn and Theo Riddick. It was later revealed that he was being punished for an unspecified violation of team rules. A disaster for nervous-wreck fantasy owners, but Bell did manage to save face with a 13/74/1 day on the ground, and two catches for an additional 13 yards as a receiver. The Lions’ best runner by a mile this season, Bell should be back to start in 2015, with Bush and his $3.75 million salary possibly being cut loose.

Johnny Manziel’s rebound from his Danny Wuerffel-esque debut. Instead of changing the narrative, Manziel compounded it, totaling just 35 yards before leaving in the second quarter with a hamstring injury. Manziel will likely be sidelined for Week 17, but even if he gets the start against the Ravens, he’ll be impossible to trust in daily leagues. In a league that’s biased against running quarterbacks, Manziel is having the kind of rookie year that could make earning a second chance difficult.

Questions

1. Even if it sort of worked, is there a sadder power play than Jimmy Clausen?

2. Needing a walkoff safety to beat a 6-8 team is seriously what convinced you to publicly commit to Joe Philbin for another year?

3. Can you name a single sixth-round quarterback who hasn’t started at least one game for Ken Whisenhunt?

Stats of the Week

The Seahawks have allowed just 33 points over their past five games. Seven teams allowed at least 33 points in Week 16.

Colin Kaepernick’s 90-yard touchdown was the second longest rush by a quarterback in NFL history, and tied with Latavius Murray for the longest of 2014.

On the other side of the Kaepernick coin, zero of his 17 touchdown passes have come in the fourth quarter, with only four coming after halftime.

The Chiefs are still sitting on zero touchdowns scored by receivers this season. Alex Smith makes the impossible possible.

Zach Ertz’s 15 receptions set a new Eagles franchise record, and represent 27.7 percent of his season total.

Joe Flacco and Case Keenum combined for 41 completions Sunday … and 51 incompletions. Riveting stuff.

Julio Jones has 30 catches of 20-plus yards. No one else has more than 22.

Brandon Marshall recorded only five 20-yard catches all season.

Drew Brees is on pace for 4,982 yards. Translation: The Saints will move mountains to get him to 5,000 against the Bucs.

Awards Section

Week 16 Fantasy All-Pro Team: QB Russell Wilson, RB Frank Gore, RB Marshawn Lynch, WR Odell Beckham, WR Mike Wallace, WR Randall Cobb, TE Luke Willson

The That Actually Happened Award: Jimmy Clausen, Case Keenum and Ryan Lindley all starting games in Week 16 of a real, live NFL season.

The Never Forget Award, Courtesy of ESPN: The Jaguars selecting P Bryan Anger ahead of Russell Wilson.

The Literally Stop Award: “Zurlon Tipton” scoring a touchdown in fantasy finals week.

Most Polite Explanation For The Constant Burning Of Bradley Fletcher And Cary Williams: "They're very naïve and they play how they play, so they (can’t) care less who's out there or who's at wide receiver,” DeSean Jackson on his former team’s defensive philosophy.

Best Twitter Freakout Award: The media masses on Marshawn Lynch’s “thanks for asking.”