Being the quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys, Tony Romo’s used to taking criticism. He hears all the words about how he ruined Bill Parcells’ life, how having Jessica Simpson around distorts his focus, and how he threw to the wrong receiver in a game. Anything he does on or off the field is questioned because of who he is. Ordinarily you’d figure he’d be bothered by such nitpicking the way Donovan McNabb was, but Romo admitted that it’s natural for people — himself included — to play the role of a Monday morning quarterback:
For me, I don’t necessarily take that feeling home with me and get mad at people and frustrated because I know when I’m sitting watching the Olympics I say, ‘Why’d that guy do that?’ or ‘Why didn’t he do this?’ We’re all Monday morning quarterbacks. That’s the way we all are. It’s part of the fun-ness. Let’s talk about this on the radio, let’s have a little give and take here. And for me, I don’t mind anymore when someone says something because it gets people debating and talking about it. I think sometimes people talking about it is good for the game, for what it is. You hope you’re always on the good side of the call but that’s not always the case. If you can understand that in your brain, then you’re OK with whatever happens and how it goes. You can rest easy when you’re playing, when you’re done playing or when your career is over.
Romo to me is different from many QBs because he was able to recover from the devastating botched field goal against Seattle in the playoffs — a potentially career-threatening psychological miscue; he doesn’t seem to be bothered by criticism. I really believe that his success is due to this realist, and casual approach to the criticism. And honestly, who wouldn’t date Jessica Simpson if they had the chance? I sure know Michael Strahan would.
