Dallas Cowboys

Analytics site calls Tony Romo a non-viable NFL starter

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Due to the frequency of his injuries, one analytics site believes Dallas Cowboys 36-year old quarterback Tony Romo is no longer a reliable NFL starter.

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak is a phrase you’ll often hear athletes refer to marking the end of their careers. Many wish to keep playing the game they love. The sport that brought them so much wealth and notoriety. But their bodies simply will not let them continue.

So the question must be asked: When is enough, enough when it comes the Dallas Cowboys 36-year old starting quarterback Tony Romo?

The laundry list of injures Romo has suffered since 2010 is eyebrow raise-worthy. Three broken collarbones and three back injuries, two of which were season-ending. Although likely at the height of his mental faculties when it comes to the game of football, the 14-year veteran’s body has never been more fragile. And it’s the player themselves that is usually last to realize when it’s time to hang up the cleats.

Whether you believe it’s that time for Romo or not, every fan must at least be worried about the aging veteran’s apparent frailness. And we will all flinch with anticipated disaster with every hit he takes from now until the very day he does leave the game. Unfortunately, time comes for all of us. And this could be Romo’s time to give up the game for a brighter, more mobile future.

But two things that are not in question are Romo’s football IQ and talent. When healthy, there are few as good as him on a football field. But due to his recent frailty, one respected analytical site is going as far to say that Tony Romo is no longer a viable starter in this league.

“Tony Romo isn’t just getting hurt more, but the frequency at which it is happening seems to be increasing, and the severity of the hit needed to cause injury is getting less intense,” wrote Pro Football Focus’ Sam Monson last week on the analytic site. “The Cowboys know they need Romo in the short term if they want to go anywhere, but his injuries are becoming less of an inevitable speed bump somewhere down the line, and more of a completely insurmountable problem that makes him a non-viable NFL starter at this point.”

Undoubtedly, even the most die-hard of Romo fans have to be emotionally torn by his most recent injury. Especially coming off an offseason where the 36-year veteran often proclaimed the fact he felt as healthy as he had in years, only to see him writhing on the turf once again.

If the aging quarterback wants to shed the injury-prone label now, he’ll have to do so by being available and actually playing regular season games under center. But to call Romo a non-viable starter is being a bit shortsighted in a league where every player is one hit away from retirement.

His spirit is willing, but his flesh…only time will tell.