A Brief List of People Who Should be Just as Embarrassed as Tony Romo

Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo has taken an absolute beating over the last day and a half for his role in the Cowboys meltdown against the Seahawks. And I suppose that's natural; it was the most visible all mistakes made over wildcard weekend. I'm not convinced, though, that it was the most costly.

Tony Romo is not the beginning and the end of the list of guys who screwed up. There are other guys out there who are just as directly responsible for the losses suffered by their teams. And while Romo's an easy target, and I'm sure that none of you would ever screw up a simple little hold like that, Tony Romo is not the only chump out there. If he's going to be ridiculed, these guys should be, too.

1) Terry Glenn. His fumble at his own 2-yard-line was at least as disastrous as Romo's botched hold. And with Romo, it's more of a fluke happening. No matter if it was the K-Ball (an excuse I personally find to be ridiculous), a case of the nerves, or just something unfortunate that could've happened at anytime but happened to happen at the worst possible time, a guy screwing up a hold is something of a fluke. Terry Glenn fumbled, however, because he didn't protect the ball well enough. Fumbles are not accidents.

Romo's gaffe cost the Cowboys three points. Glenn's cost them two points, plus possession of the football, which the Seahawks converted into seven more points, just two minutes later. That's pretty huge.

For three more guys on this list, click the little blue link right below.


2) Every Jet Offensive Player Who Let Vince Wilfork Beat Them To That Football. This was a case of Vince Wilfork thinking, and no one else doing the same. A complete mental lapse on the part of the Jets. At this level, in those circumstances, there's really no excuse for not being aware that a backwards pass is a live ball. Wilfork got to that football because on that play, at that particular time, he was smarter than every New York Jet on the field.

The Patriots had the upper hand even before that, but the game turned into a route on that play. When it happened, the Jets were down one score, looking to tie it up. After it happened, they were down two scores, and it was never the same. It cost the Jets possession, three points, and every last shred of momentum.

3) Herman Edwards. Herm's outright refusal to switch philosophy, be it with his general offensive strategy or his choice of quarterbacks, was mind-boggling. Sure, the Colts defense played better, but I refuse to believe that there was no way that it could be beat. If they were crashing the middle of the line with their defensive ends, then go outside with the ball. If they have 8 in the box, throw it over the top.

Of course, throwing the ball can be a bit of a problem, too, considering that Trent Green was awful on Sunday. He was 14-of-24 for 107 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions. His QB rating on the day was 48.4. Since being re-inserted into the lineup for Damon Huard, Green has played 8 games, and only twice has he managed a QB rating over 70, and he didn't do it at all in the last five weeks. Damon Huard, meanwhile, only had two games out of nine when his QB rating wasn't higher than 87, and on five occasions, it was over 100.

And with the season on the line, and Trent Green being completely ineffective, Herm Edwards won't even consider putting in Damon Huard? He owed his team that much. He owed the rest of his players (especially his defense, who played well enough to win) the best possible chance to win that game, and by not even considering going to Damon Huard, he didn't give it to them.

4) Trent Green. See above.