6 Reasons to Believe Tony Romo, Cowboys Can Win the Big One

Hearing the word leadership associated with Tony Romo isn't that common if it isn't coming out of Dallas. Romo held the title of the most criticized quarterback in the NFL until the arrival of Tim Tebow.

Now, he's just second. At any rate, Romo has the ability to lead the Cowboys to the next level, but the talent around has to improve

Well, the latter has happened, and now, the Cowboys have everything needed to bring another championship to Dallas.

Here are six reasons why fans should believe that Tony Romo can win a title in Dallas.

New/Old Weapons

Tony will have a healthy DeMarco Murray, Felix Jones and Miles Austin. Receiver Dez Bryant will have another year in the system, and tight end Jason Witten is, well, still Jason Witten,

The newest and possibly most important weapon will be the arrival of tight end James Hanna. I'm really intrigued by him because he's speedy and has the ability to stretch the field. I thought the Cowboys needed a hybrid tight end who could possibly line up at receiver to add another dimension.

While I doubt the Cowboys will use Hanna in that capacity, he does bring diversity and variety.

Can't wait to see him on the field.

Romo’s Maturation

Fans will recall last season when Romo tossed five interceptions in the first four weeks of the season. He threw a crucial pick against the Jets that cost Dallas the game and threw three of them when they played the Lions.

If you will recall, Romo faced an enormous amount of vitriol after those four weeks. Some thought that Romo didn’t have the tangibles needed to lead Dallas to the promise land.

Former Cowboys corner Deion Sanders went so far as to say that Romo can’t take Dallas to the Super Bowl and that it's time for Dallas to move on.   

But for the remainder of the season, Romo only turned the ball over five times through the air. He was careful with the way he handled the pigskin and led Dallas as best he could with what he had.

Romo continues to grow as evidenced by his performance last year. His 2012 should be even better.

Passing Yards

I know that passing yards is a really simple reason to give as to why Romo can lead Dallas, but I have a pretty good reason. The NFL is a passing league now, and the last six Super Bowl champs have been led by the likes of Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers, Eli Manning, Drew Brees and Ben Roethlisberger.

Tony threw 4,184 yards last season—good enough for seventh in the league. Now, don't get me wrong in thinking that just because he can throw for 4,000 yards that automatically makes him Super Bowl caliber.

Tony does this through variety, creation, an uncanny ability to improvise and just sheer ability. He's good at his job, and the Cowboys are a better team because of him.

The passing yards—31 touchdowns—just prove that the NFL we see and hear every Sunday is a place where he belongs and can succeed.

Renewed Focus

Romo is a husband and a new father now. He also decided not to try and qualify for the U.S. Open—the golf tournament. Now, I always thought that Romo playing golf in the offseason wasn't a problem. Romo going to Mexico on vacation wasn't a problem, and whatever offseason or bye-week activity he decided to do wasn't really an issue.

But this should go a long way to quell the thoughts of many who believe that Romo's focus wasn't totally on football.

Having a child gives you a new sense of urgency and allows you to see the responsibilities in your life from a different perspective.

Let's see how Romo responds, but it should make him better.

Division Teams Much Better

The Redskins are improved by the arrival of Robert Griffin III, the Giants are the defending Super Bowl champs and the Eagles will have another season to gel.

Bottom line is that Dallas needs to win now. The Redskins have been awful for a decade now, and the losing has to stop soon, doesn't it? The Giants seem to be epitome of consistency in the NFC East, and the Eagles have a win-now attitude as well.

The Cowboys as a unit...know that the time is now to make a move.

Schedule

Dallas plays the Bucs, Panthers, Browns, Redskins twice, Saints and Falcons. That's just a part of the Cowboys' schedule, but all games listed above are winnable.

The Saints are in shambles, the Bucs and Panthers are still growing, the Redskins still have major holes and the Falcons are always a toss-up.

In fact, I would venture to say that these are all games that Dallas needs to win in case they lose to the Ravens, Eagles, Giants, Bears and Steelers.

Romo is able to get off against just about any team, but he should have an easier time finding space against the easier teams on the schedule.