Tony Romo hasn't choked and Isn't Danny White

As the energy and adrenaline seeped trough the hole in the roof of Texas Stadium, many couldn’t believe that the No. 1 seed in the NFC, the Dallas Cowboys, had just loss to the New York Giants.

After all, the Cowboys had beaten those same New York Giants by double-digits twice during the regular season, and with a minute to go in the first half, a seven-point lead was capped by a 10-minute drive. The Cowboys looked well on their way to another double-digit win over the Giants.

But it wasn’t meant to be.

The Giants began to attack Cowboys' cornerback Jacques Reeves on every play, and after a facemask penalty gave the Giants the ball at the Dallas 23-yard line, they were able to score a touchdown and tie the game before halftime. That touchdown completely changed the game.

Now, Romo didn’t have his best day—18 for 36 for 201 yards, one touchdown, and one interception—but he didn't lose the game.

The defense couldn’t make stops at critical moments, and the running game, which dominated the first half, quickly lost steam in the second half, and penalties continued to plague them throughout the game.

Not one of those aspects of the game were a direct reflection of Tony Romo, but because on the last play of the game, when the Cowboys needed a touchdown to tie the game and he threw an interception, the blogosphere and all the idiots that think their opinion count, began to label Tony Romo a choker.

To further prove their beliefs they used the bobbled snap in the playoffs at Seattle in 2006 as exhibit No. 2. However, that was Tony Romo as a field-goal holder, not a quarterback. If people want to call that play a choke job, then so be it, but to say that Romo will not amount to anything is absolutely ludicrous.

The performance in the playoff game against the Giants, partnered with the fact that the Cowboys haven’t won a playoff game since 1996, has fueled the comparisons to former Cowboys' quarterback Danny White.

White, much like Romo, was blamed for playoff losses that didn’t completely reflect his own performance (e.g. 1982 NFC Championship game against the San Francisco 49ers), and he will forever be labeled as a good quarterback who couldn’t get the job done when it counted.

I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention the Jessica Simpson/Mexico trip before the playoffs as examples of other reason’s why Tony Romo won’t ever be a great quarterback.

Again, the notion that Jessica Simpson is a valid reason that the Cowboys faded down the stretch and ultimately lost in the divisional round of the playoffs is ridiculous and retarded.

It's preposterous for fans to expect players to not have a personal life, or to condemn how the players conduct their personal lives.

My point is that Tony Romo is the man for the Dallas Cowboys, and he will be for quite some time. He is very talented and had a Pro Bowl season in 2007, and there is little reason not to believe that he won’t do it again.

Remember that last year was Tony Romo's first season as a starting quarterback, and last I checked, it was a very good one. Also, the young man is 26-years old, and this will be in his second year under the tutelage of offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, which should help him improve even more.

He will ultimately be measured by how many Super Bowl Championships he wins, but when it is all said and done, I expect Tony Romo to be one of the greatest quarterbacks ever.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?