It's Not All Romo

It is the most logical thing to do.  In some respects it has become the American pastime.  There is, after all, a reason they don't call it "Monday Morning Running Back."  Blaming the quarterback for a loss is just what sports fans do.  More than any other sport the quarterback bears the blame, and the glory, for his teams success.

Three days after a 34-18 loss to the Chicago Bears Tony Romo is yet again that quarterback.

When you look at the big picture it's easy to see why fans are glossing him "Tony Turnover." Five interceptions are never good.  But start to dig a little deeper and it's clear to see that there is plenty of blame to go around.

Last week fans praised Romo's toughness after his offensive line provided nothing but "look-out" blocks.  You know the type.  The type where the offensive lineman let the defenders go by them, turn around and yell, "look out!" as Romo gets sandwiched.

This week fans should be blaming the offensive line again.  It wasn't "look out" blocks that hurt the Cowboys; it was the lack of a running game.

The Bears rarely blitzed last night.  When they did, on more than one occasion, the Cowboys receivers failed to adjust.  (See Dez Bryant and interception number one).  No blitz means blanket coverage on the outside which equals nowhere to throw.

Sure Romo made some bad passes, but he also made some great throws that his receivers simply dropped.  (See Dez Bryant again).

During last night's nationally televised game Jon Gruden talked about "the good ol' days" for Cowboy fans.  The ones where lineman who were known more for what they did than what they didn't do.

The Cowboys totaled 41 yards rushing last night.  That, in a word is pathetic. The Dallas offense ran the ball just 14 times, which says the coaching staff doesn't trust the offensive line, and why should they.

All it takes is a glance at the Cowboys in-state rival to see what is missing.  The Houston Texans have become one of the premier teams in the NFL because of two things: a strong defense and a dominating running game.

The Cowboys are on their way to getting the defensive thing worked out.  They're a long way away from getting the running game worked out.

I know it's easy to blame Romo, again five interceptions never looked good.  But before passing all the blame to him take a look around and see that there's plenty of blame to go down the (offensive) line.