(AP) Cowboys not ruling out Romo for finale with Eagles
By SCHUYLER DIXON
AP Sports Writer
IRVING, Texas
Tony Romo limped so badly on one play against Washington, he barely made it to the spot where he had to hand off.
Breitbart Sports Update: Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said on Tuesday on a Dallas radio show:
“He is going through treatment beginning [Monday], and if that treatment has positive implications that it certainly has a chance to have, then he should not be ruled out in any way for this game,” Jones said Tuesday morning on 105.3 The Fan Dallas-Fort Worth. “On the other hand, we paid a lot of money, several years ago for just this very circumstance.
“Should we be in a situation where a game, or a possible intermittent time when Tony couldn’t play, get the very best [we] can, and that’s why we signed Kyle Orton for over $10 million three-years ago, just for this very occasion.”
The obvious limp was gone by the time the Dallas quarterback moved forward in the pocket and threw a fourth-down touchdown pass to DeMarco Murray that gave Dallas a season-saving 24-23 win over the Redskins.
The severity of his back injury is likely to remain a question all week as the Cowboys prepare for their third straight season finale for the NFC East title and a playoff berth, this time against Philadelphia on Sunday night.
Responding to reports that Romo wouldn’t play against the Eagles, coach Jason Garrett said Monday the team had “not made that determination at all at this point.”
Garrett wouldn’t reveal the results of an MRI for the 33-year-old Romo, who had back surgery to remove a cyst in April and missed offseason workouts.
Romo came up limping after tripping over his foot while escaping pressure during the possession before the winning drive. He doubled over in apparent pain but didn’t leave the game, eventually throwing for 140 of his 226 yards passing in the fourth quarter.
Garrett said the Cowboys were working to add a third quarterback behind backup Kyle Orton, who hasn’t started a game since 2011, the year he was replaced by Tim Tebow in Denver.
Orton, who wasn’t in the Cowboys’ locker room when it was open to reporters Monday, started the last three games for Kansas City that season after the Chiefs picked him up on waivers. He’s been with Dallas the past two years.
Romo figures to do everything he can to take the first snap against the Eagles because he’d like to change the ending after losing the past two winner-take-all finales, against the New York Giants two years ago and the Redskins in 2012.
He lost to Philadelphia in the same scenario five years ago.
Beyond the incentive to end Dallas’ three-year playoff drought, Romo has a history of playing through injuries. He didn’t miss a game in 2011 after breaking his ribs early in the season against San Francisco.
If Romo can’t play, the Cowboys might be without their offensive and defensive leaders. Sean Lee was hopeful last week he would return against the Eagles after missing two games with a sprained neck, but Garrett said Monday the linebacker’s outlook hadn’t changed.
Cornerback Morris Claiborne might be available. The top 10 pick from 2012 has missed six of the past seven games with hamstring issues, and his recovery was set back when he had to leave the team after the death of his father and the birth of his child.
Now the Cowboys might have to win without the biggest name of all.