It all started on January 7, 2007. This is when Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys were about to win the wild-card playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks. All they had to do is allow Martin Gramatica to kick a 19-yard field goal-a distance even closer than an extra point. But Romo, the holder, inexplicably bobbled the ball. He then took off with it and got tackled a yard from the first down. One minute and 19 seconds later Seattle had won, 21-20.
Cut to the present. On Sunday December 4, 2011, Tony Romo completed a pass to Dez Bryant at Arizona Cardinals 31 yard line. There were 26 seconds left and the game was tied 13-13. Instead of calling a time out at that point, Romo wasted 17 seconds while his team lined up and then spiked the ball. With only 7 seconds left, all the team could do was try a 49-yard field goal. However, just as Dan Bailey was about to kick the field goal, Coach Jason Garrett called a time out. He later explained that he was afraid time was running out. Baily kicked the field goal and it didn’t count. He then tried a second field goal and it was short and wide. Dallas lost in overtime 19-13.
In between these games there were an array of other mistakes. In the first game of the 2011 season, The Cowboys were playing the New York Jets. With 8:59 left in the fourth quarter the Cowboys were ahead 24-17. Jason Witten made a spectacular 67 yard catch that put the Cowboys on the Jet’s 3-yard line. Then Romo rolled out to pass and, opps, he fumbled the ball and the Jets recovered. The Jets went on to win the game. In the fourth game of this season, Dallas led Detroit by 24 points in the third quarter. Then Romo was intercepted three times and Detroit eventually won the game, 34-30.
If you go through the list of games from Romo’s first season to the present season, you will find many other instances of “dumb plays” by Dallas, often involving Romo. Which begs the question: Are the Dallas Cowboys accident prone. Is Romo accident prone?
The term “accident prone” was originally a psychoanalytic concept that referred to people who had a tendency to have more than the normal amount of accidents. For example, I once treated a man who kept having so many automobile accidents that he eventually had his license taken away from him. In analyzing his childhood, I became aware of his relationship with his overly strict and at times emotionally abusive father.
The father tried to teach him how to drive, and my patient recalled that his father would be hollering each step of the way and would often throw up his arms and bemoan, “You shouldn’t even get a license. You’ll probably end up killing people!” Thus, as an adult, he always heard his father’s voice in his brain while he was driving. Often his father’s loud voice and his own timid voice were in conflict inside his head, and it was during such times that he would have an accident. It was as if the father prophecy had become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Romo did not have a harsh or strict father. Of Mexican descent, Romo’s father had a close relationship with his son. When the elder Romo suffered from prostate cancer in 2007, TE Jason Witten told the Dallas Morning News, “Tony and his dad, they have a good relationship. I don’t think he wants Tony to thin a lot about it [the cancer] or want him losing his concentration. But they’re best friends, so that makes it harder.”
As a psychoanalyst, I have encountered numerous cases of people who were accident prone. In one case, a man felt pressured because his whole family put him on a pedestal and expected greatness from him. He lived in fear of letting down his family. And so he was always making crucial mistakes at the wrong time, and they always forgave him and kept expecting great things.
We don’t know enough about Romo to make a definitive analysis. All we can do is speculate, based on the numerous accidents that have occurred since he took over as first-string quarterback of the Cowboys. Certainly we can make a strong case that the accidents that have occurred at crucial moments seem to be piling up. And, quite possibly, we can further speculate that Romo’s accidents are catching. In the recent game against the Cardinals, Coach Jason Garrett also seems to have caught the “dumb play” bug.
The Cowboy coaching staff is aware of the buzz about the Cowboys and has worked hard to eliminate gaffs. Sometimes the hard work seems to pay off and Dallas plays up to expectations. Other times, the Cowboys appear to regress.
What does the future hold for the Cowboys? They still lead their division by one game, but they have two important games against the Giants. Then, if they make the playoffs, will they be able to play up to their potential? Will they be able to avoid making the dumb plays, can they prevent the accidents that have done them in previously?
The cowboys arguably have the largest fan base in professional football. Will they finally satisfy their long-suffering fans-or will they once again disappoint?