National Football League

Report: Romo wants to play in opener

Published Jul. 30, 2013 1:00 a.m. ET

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Tony Romo reportedly doesn’t want to sit out the Dallas Cowboys opening preseason game.

While coach Jason Garrett put off questions over the weekend about whether or not the quarterback would play in Sunday’s Hall of Fame Game against the Miami Dolphins, Romo told ESPN.com that he always wants the chance to play.

"If I did play, it would be a series, [so] whether you went eight plays or three plays, I'm not sure how much that is going to affect that," Romo told the site. "Saying that, I still want to play every time I suit up. Every time I step out there -- your juices are flowing and you want to compete. From that perspective, yeah, but whatever the coaches want."

Romo had a cyst removed from his back in April and wasn’t cleared to return until mid-June. He has been closely monitored in practice, with coaches reportedly keeping track of his total throws.

FOX Sports Southwest reported last week that Garrett said in an exclusive interview that Romo may not play in the game.

"It's one of those deals where I suppose he could play five plays or whatever, but we might lean to no plays," Garrett said. "But the clock starts on our '1's' (first-teamers) in Week 2 of the preseason. So that's not going to be Tony's game."

On Saturday, it was widely reported that he said no official decisions on playing time have been made.