When Troy Aikman said Tony Romo “already is a better quarterback than I was,” a lot of people wondered if maybe Aikman was feeling the effects of too many concussions. But the man who may have the best basis of anyone anywhere to compare Aikman to Romo says Aikman’s comments are valid.
Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett, who backed up Aikman for seven seasons and is heading into his sixth season coaching Romo, says Aikman has been “dead on” in his assessment of Romo.
“I think that’s a reflection on who Troy Aikman is,” Garrett told the Star-Telegram. “Troy Aikman was obviously an outstanding quarterback, first-ballot Hall of Famer, three-time Super Bowl winner, someone who was very talented, but also someone who was very modest. Troy understands the challenges of playing in the National Football League more than anybody else does, and I think his perspective on what Tony has done throughout his career is pretty dead on. He has a real appreciation for Tony as a player, as a person, as a leader in our locker room and on our football team, and I think those comments stem from that.”
In terms of the physical tools the quarterbacks have, it’s easy to see why both Aikman and Garrett would think highly of Romo’s abilities. The difference between Romo’s career and Aikman’s however, comes down to how they used their physical tools in a few key plays when big games were on the line. Until Romo makes the big plays on the biggest stage, not many people are going to buy the argument that Romo is even in the same ballpark as Aikman, let alone better.