Dallas Cowboys: Will Jerry Jones Lose Patience with Tony Romo After This Season?

This October will be the sixth full year of the Tony Romo era in Dallas.

Way before there was Linsanity, the undrafted Romo burst onto the scene replacing the struggling Drew Bledsoe in a rivalry game against the New York Giants. 

Romo took over that night and never looked back. 

We didn't see the same hype for Romo that we saw for say, Jeremy Lin or Tim Tebow, but he's easily one of the greatest success stories in the game.

His regular-season numbers are undoubtedly elite. 

His career passer rating is 96.9, and he had his best season this year with a 102.5 rating. He's thrown for 149 touchdowns, 72 interceptions and has a completion percentage of 64.5. 

These numbers are enough to ensure a quarterback's starting status for the next decade, right?

Not in Dallas. 

Not with only one playoff win.

Not with the time on his clock to succeed in the playoffs ticking away.

2012 is going to be a difficult year for Romo and the Cowboys. They have to play Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, the Giants twice, New Orleans, Atlanta and Philadelphia twice. If the Redskins get Peyton Manning then add another pair of tough games.

It's not going to be easy.

So there's a chance that the a) the Cowboys miss out on the playoffs, or b) they get a wild card game on the road and lose again somewhere in the playoffs.

Once that happens, it's conceivable that people will start blaming Romo again. They'll start saying how he can't win in the playoffs and how he's not great in the clutch.

And maybe, just maybe, Jerry Jones will be pressured to look for a new quarterback.

After all, Romo isn't getting any younger. He'll be 32 next season, and his window of opportunity is getting smaller with every failed season.

With quarterbacks like Eli Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees, Cam Newton, Matt Stafford, and perhaps Peyton Manning, the NFC is no cakewalk. Romo could easily be trounced in the first few rounds of the playoffs, and that's if he makes it.

So what happens if the season ends without him having a taste of the Super Bowl again?

Do the Cowboys move on with Romo and look for someone else?

The answer to this is absolutely not.

If Romo's not the answer, who will be?

Romo is their best option for not only the short run, but also the long term. He gives Dallas the best chance to win. 

At the end of the day, his surrounding teammates are going to dictate how far the Cowboys go. Last year, they didn't have a secondary at all, and it harmed them mightily in the end. 

The cliche goes that a team is only as strong as its weakest link. Tony Romo is definitely not that weak link. He's the reason why they were close to making the playoffs last season, and he'll be the main factor why they succeed in the future.

If the Cowboys ever win the Super Bowl, it'll be because of Romo. 

Cutting ties with Romo even if the team fails to succeed this year or next year is foolish. He had his best statistical season this year. Until his numbers decline and other options open up either in the draft or via free agency, the Cowboys absolutely need to stick with Romo.

It's amazing what he's done with an incompetent head coach in Wade Phillips and a diva wide receiver in Terrell Owens.

He's also faced numerous injuries and overcame them without a blip.

This season was the one year where he had limited distractions, and we all saw what he did on the stat sheet. He even was clutch in several big moments, like against the San Francisco 49ers and the Washington Redskins. 

The dude can play. 

Football fans just need to understand that it takes a team effort to win a Super Bowl. The Cowboys haven't had that elite team ever. Their defensive backs have always been lackluster, and in the past, they had coaching issues and an attention-seeking wide receiver.

Romo may not be Peyton Manning or Tom Brady, where he can mask every single organizational problem, but he does give Dallas the best chance to win. 

For that, he should keep his job as long as he keeps his stats up.