Tony Romo: Dallas Cowboys Will Suffer If QB Doesn't Take Time to Heal

Even though the Dallas Cowboys were able to outlast the Washington Redskins on Monday Night Football, it was clear quarterback Tony Romo wasn't anywhere near 100 percent. Credit to him for toughing it out, but the team will suffer if he doesn't take the time to get back to full strength.

While Romo was sacked just once by the Redskins and even showed some good mobility in the pocket, it was obvious that when he tried to put some extra mustard on a pass it just wasn't there. And running for his life didn't help dull the pain much, either.

All told, Romo threw for 255 yards and no touchdowns. Kevin Ogletree was the main reason for Romo's only interception and also lost a fumble, so it wasn't a good night for him in the battle for playing time against Laurent Robinson.

Dallas would like Romo to be available for Sunday's clash with the upstart Detroit Lions. However, the best course of action with the bye week following the Lions game would be to let him get three weeks of rest by sitting him out in Week 4.

The seventh-year QB would be at a big risk of suffering an even more serious injury since the Cowboys offensive line clearly has no plans of doing much pass blocking in the near future.

Jon Kitna proved last season that he is a capable backup by completing 65 percent of his passes and compiling an 88.9 quarterback rating. With a full week of first-team practice reps, the Cowboys could still be competitive against the Lions with him under center.

Dallas has to look at the big picture and realize if it's going to reach full potential it is paramount that Romo is completely healthy. Leaving him out there now will do more harm than good when it matters most at season's end.

Even if it means a loss to Detroit (which isn't guaranteed by any means), the Cowboys should let Romo focus on treatment and recuperation for the next three weeks.

It's the best move for the long run, which is the only thing that really matters in the NFL. Nobody cares if you beat the Lions in Week 4 if it means your starting quarterback isn't available against the New York Giants in Week 17.