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Dallas Cowboys Rumors: Tony Romo May Be Moving To The Trade Block After Emergence Of Dak Prescott

By Nathan Francis
Published on: 13:17 PST, Oct 16, 2016

The Dallas Cowboys are facing rumors of a shake-up behind center, with reports that the emergence of Dak Prescott could lead the team to move Tony Romo to the bench — or even to the trade block.

While Romo has been out recovering from a broken bone in his back, Prescott has led the Cowboys to an NFC East leading 5-1 record and a return from the quarterback doldrums of last season. In 2015, the Cowboys faltered to a 4-12 record as a parade of ineffective backups stepped in for the injured Romo, intensifying the questions about the team’s future behind center once Romo retires.

Dak Prescott may have answered those questions with his performance so far, prompting rumors that the Dallas Cowboys are ready to make the permanent change to the rookie signal caller. Even though Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has been steadfast in calling Tony Romo the team’s starter once he’s healthy again, USA Today noted that Prescott may have played his way into that role instead.

“All week long, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said that Romo was the team’s ‘No. 1 quarterback’ and even Prescott said “This is Tony’s team.”

“But can the Cowboys risk their winning formula by disrupting their most important position in football?

“It’s going to make the bye week – and the subsequent matchup against the division-rival Philadelphia Eagles – very interesting.”

Dak Prescott was particularly effective in Sunday’s win over the Green Bay Packers, completing 13 of 21 passes for 185 yards and three touchdowns. He also led a 97-yard scoring drive that took just 33 seconds and ended with a 20-yard touchdown pass.

It already appears that the Dallas Cowboys are pushing back Tony Romo’s return. Though he was slated to be back on the field after the team’s bye week, there are rumors that the team is sticking with Dak Prescott a while longer.

“The original plan was to have Tony Romo come back after the bye against the Eagles on Sunday night,” NFL insider Ian Rapoport said on Sunday, via The Sporting News. “I am now told the Cowboys want to make sure Romo is a hundred thousand, million percent ready to go when he is back. So don’t be surprised if Dak Prescott starts at least one more game after the bye while they make sure that Romo is ready. So what this means is the Cowboys will delay a decision until they absolutely have to, perhaps allowing Prescott to keep going until Romo gets back in there.”

But the Dallas Cowboys may not just be moving Tony Romo to the bench. With his value as a starting quarterback still very high in a quarterback-driven league, there are some rumors that the team could trade him to a desperate partner and score a good return. CBS Sports reporter Ryan Wilson noted that there are rumblings across the league that Romo’s trade value could be at its highest.

The Denver Broncos could be a strong trade contender. As the Denver Post’s Mark Kiszla noted, the Broncos have a Super Bowl-caliber defense but have a struggling Trevor Siemian at quarterback. He suggested that the Broncos could seek a trade for Tony Romo, who would be enough to make the Broncos a favorite to repeat at Super Bowl champions.

“Although the Broncos are in the neighborhood of $10 million under the salary cap, Romo’s cap number of $20 million would require serious financial gymnastics to make a deal. But that’s why capologists get paid big bucks. The Broncos get Romo. The Cowboys get Siemian. Deal?”

The rumors surrounding the Dallas Cowboys are likely to only intensify in the next two weeks, with the team’s bye week allowing plenty of time for speculation about Dak Prescott taking over as quarterback and Tony Romo being traded.

[Featured Image by Mike Roemer/AP Images]

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