Jerry Jones believes Romo will play role in playoff run, return for 2017
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has a lot of thoughts on the future of quarterback Tony Romo. Unsurprisingly, most of them involve benefiting the only pro team he's ever played for.
While everyone in the organization - including Romo - has endorsed Dak Prescott as the new franchise quarterback, Jones says he foresees a situation where the veteran still plays an on-field role this season.
In an exclusive interview with the New York Daily News' Gary Myers, Jones looked into his glass ball and predicted Romo - for either injury or performance reasons - will play for the 'Boys en route to Super Bowl 51.
"I think Romo is going to get his opportunity," Jones said. "I don't want it to happen. But I think he may get his opportunity to get us a Super Bowl. While that's a mixed bag when I think about it - that means you don't have Dak out there - but it means, what a story, one for the ages, if he'd step in there and this year help us win a Super Bowl on the field with his skill.
"That can happen here. We're not talking about a bus driver out there. We're talking about a guy who can go out there and move our team."
Related: Jones hints Romo could see reps down the stretch
The 14-year pro carries a $24.7-million cap hit next season, which Jones is happy to pay Romo, even if it is as a backup. In fact, Jones calls it "my intention" to have Romo be his backup quarterback next season, but doesn't expect the veteran to be alright with the designation.
"I think Tony is going to compete. He will never accept it," Jones said. "But do I think it is possible that he could be in Dallas and it's good for him and good for us and be the smart thing to do? How many times have we ever seen one drawn up where you see that kind of depth at the quarterback position?"
Jones admits his knowledge of Romo's want to compete, yet still believes he can convince the Cowboys' all-time leading passer to stick with the team as a reserve instead of leaving for another starting job. Jones also acknowledged how he believes Romo is unhappy in the current situation and that history is against veteran competitors taking backup roles. Nonetheless, Jones has a large amount of faith Romo will be exceedingly loyal to his current teammates.
"I think if I ask Tony to go with us on that and let's try to win a championship, I think, yes, he will," said Jones. "Tony is investing in his teammates."
" ... Everybody understands while he's excited to be part of the team and he's excited for the team, that he's dying inside not to be out there competing. I underline the words dying inside. There are plenty of examples where high profile quarterbacks didn't go down gracefully and step off the field gracefully. Lots of example of it. It's just hard for that kind for competitor to do that."
Given his intention not to steal the spotlight from his teammates and graciously support Prescott, Romo hasn't made many comments about his future beyond 2016 and is not expected to do so until the Cowboys season has ended.