Houston Texans: Stop Playing Chicken, Trade for Tony Romo

The Houston Texans showed their hand when they traded quarterback Brock Osweiler away, now they need to quit playing chicken and trade for Tony Romo

With 2017 NFL free agency approaching, the Dallas Cowboys informed quarterback Tony Romo that he would be released. The soon-to-be 37-year-old Romo had lost his job to 2016 NFL Rookie of the Year Dak Prescott and was going to be free to choose where to finish his career. Much of the talk was that it would be between two teams: the Denver Broncos and the Houston Texans.

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An unexpected trade then happened where the Texans shipped their overpaid quarterback Brock Osweiler to the Cleveland Browns. They sent a second-round pick, along with Osweiler, to Cleveland for a fourth-rounder as they obviously only wanted to dump Osweiler’s salary. The move freed them up to sign Romo, but then Dallas also had time to think about things.

Their plan was to cut Romo as a post-June 1 cut. That means until the calendar turned to June, Romo’s contract would be on the books. They couldn’t use that money for anything anyway, and with one of the two teams rumored to be interested in him, why give him away for free? Instead they decided to cling to him and hope for a trade.

While some may ridicule Dallas, it makes sense. They’re in no rush especially considering they gain nothing from acting now. The team that should be in a rush is Houston. They need a quarterback worse than almost anyone right now and can’t afford to lose out on the best option available.

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The Denver Broncos as the only other talked about alternative, however, can wait it out. They have a starter from a season ago in Trevor Siemian and 2016 first-round pick Paxton Lynch. They would have no issues waiting on Dallas to cut Romo and it affects nothing since they have guys in place to groom. Houston on the other hand has Tom Savage and Brandon Weeden at the position. They have to make a move, and Romo is the logical answer.

Stopping the Rebuttals

Some will surely say trading for Romo makes no sense, but that’s ludicrous. He is a legitimate franchise quarterback with 34,183 yards passing, 248 touchdowns and just 117 interceptions. Houston has his former backup in Weeden, and is looking to start Tom Savage—owner of zero career touchdowns.

One of the biggest knocks on Romo is his injury history of late. Yet, Houston and their fan base have no room to cast stones. Savage missed all of the 2015 season after being placed on IR with a shoulder injury. He returned in 2016 to serve as a backup before being pressed into starting duty after Osweiler stunk it up so badly. Savage lasted just two games before again being injured and had to watch Osweiler lead the team into the postseason.

Other rebuttals for a trade revolve around Romo’s deal. The veteran is set to make $14 million this season. While that’s a lot, they just got rid of Osweiler’s $16 million and the Bears just signed former backup Mike Glennon to a $15 million a year contract. So the advice here is—get over it. Good quarterbacks get paid. Is there is a risk with Romo? Yes. But can he be good? Absolutely. The guys they currently have? No one knows. Pay the one who can actually win games.

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Houston has no choice. They draft too late in a bad quarterback class to get a starter this season. Savage isn’t proven and cannot stay healthy and Weeden is just a decent backup that isn’t the franchise guy either. The good news is, Dallas probably won’t demand a ton for Romo, just something. If they were willing to pay a second-round pick to rid themselves of Osweiler, why not give up another pick to obtain Romo’s services. Playing chicken could leave them with much worse options.