It’s only March, but we at LBS are already announcing Troy Aikman as a finalist for most modest statement of the year in 2012. For those of you who are unfamiliar with his resume, Aikman was a six-time Pro Bowler who led the Dallas Cowboys to three Super Bowl championships in the early ’90s. With Aikman under center, the Cowboys were a team feared by the entire NFL and considered one of the greatest of all time. Despite that, Aikman somehow expects us to believe that he truly thinks Tony Romo is a better quarterback than he was.
“I think Tony already is a better quarterback than I was,” Aikman said in an interview with the Brownsville Herald. “I know how quarterbacks are judged but as far as his play-making ability and the things that he is capable of doing, he is a far more athletic quarterback, capable of making more plays than I ever was able to. He has a good team around him and hopefully, and I believe this will happen, I believe that he will win a Super Bowl before he is done playing.”
Yes, Romo’s stats are more impressive. Aikman’s threw for only 3,445 yards and 23 touchdowns during his best season in 1992, while Romo’s best season featured 4,211 yards and 36 touchdowns. That being said, we all know the NFL is a passing league now and relied on the run back in the ’90s. The difference between Aikman and Romo is Aikman won three rings in his first six years as a full-time starter. Romo has none.
You can argue that Aikman was surrounded with better players, but we all know Romo has single-handedly choked games away for the Cowboys. When called upon, Aikman did the opposite. When Aikman was running the offense, you can guarantee there wasn’t a guy in the locker room who didn’t know who the team’s leaders were. The same can’t be said for Romo’s Cowboys.
Romo believes this Cowboys team will win a Super Bowl and Aikman may actually believe that too. However, Troy can easily avoid being the Joe Namath of the Cowboys without saying something absurd like Romo is a better quarterback than he was.
