NFL

Tony Romo’s performance: ‘Moral victory’ or choke job?

The crowd that nominates Tony Romo as the best quarterback in the NFC East these days was crowing as he engaged Peyton Manning in that epic shootout. But the crowd that is certain Romo will never win a Super Bowl got all the evidence they needed when he threw a pick that cost the Cowboys the game in the final two minutes.

“This is a moral victory,” Jerry Jones said after the 51-48 loss to the Broncos. “It’s not a loser talking here. It’s just this has a lot of the feelings of a victory with it.”

Can’t you just see Bill Parcells rolling his eyes when he hears that?

Rodney Harrison cites a mental block that paralyzed Romo in crunch time, and Tony Dungy advises him to relax in the pressurized moments.

Jones did get it right when asked if Romo will be remembered for his mistakes in crucial situations — the botched snap in Seattle in the playoffs in 2007, the three interceptions at the Redskins in last season’s must-win finale — otherwise known as chokes.

“They will,” Jones said, “until he wins the Super Bowl.”

He should have stopped there.

“The guy standing over on the other sideline or up in the box, John Elway, had those things said about him his entire career,” Jones said. “He was a great player and we all know that, and he ultimately got his Super Bowls and they don’t say that about him any more.”

So that’s why Jerry rewarded Romo with that six-year, $108 million contract: He looks at him and sees John Elway!

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Maybe hiring a 73-year-old defensive coordinator who had been away from the NFL for five years wasn’t such a masterstroke by Jones, after all.

While much of the finger-pointing for the Cowboys’ loss was directed (unfairly) on a trademark late interception by Tony Romo after he had thrown for 506 yards and five TDs, new defensive boss Monte Kiffin deserves to be on the hot seat, too.

Kiffin was being celebrated after the Cowboys forced six turnovers in their season-opening, 36-31 win over the Giants, a total that covered up the fact that Dallas allowed a whopping 478 total yards.

Kiffin’s unit gave up 517 yards to Manning and the Broncos on Sunday after allowing 506 the week before. It’s the first time in team history the Cowboys allowed 500-plus yards in back-to-back games, and Dallas is on track to smash the club record for most yards allowed in a season set last year under Rob Ryan.

Kiffin switched the Cowboys to a 4-3 alignment and brought in his Cover-2 scheme, which — with its emphasis on soft zone coverage — seems increasingly outdated in this age of relentless passing attacks using four- and five-receiver sets.

Not that you’ll hear Jones second-guessing himself for the switch in defensive coordinators and philosophies. The Dallas owner (and GM) apparently wasn’t too disappointed with the wild loss to Denver, telling reporters afterward he considered it a “moral” victory.

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If Manning is going to throw 20 touchdown passes for every interception, he likely will be hoisting his second Lombardi Trophy, barring a New York Super Bowl blizzard. But rising threats to Peyton’s quest for world domination have emerged. Let’s call them the New Kids On The Block:

SAINTS: As an offensive brain trust, the Drew Brees-Sean Payton duo is arguably the best quarterback-head coach dynamic we have seen since Joe Montana and Bill Walsh. But defensive coordinator Rob Ryan has made a dramatic difference, and confounded Jay Cutler with exotic blitzes the Bears had not seen on tape.

“You can compare it to the Super Bowl year when [former Saints defensive coordinator] Gregg Williams would mix up the fronts, mix up the looks,” said Bears left tackle Jermon Bushrod, a former Saint.

Such chicanery can make the victim sound like a sore loser.

“It really has nothing to do with them,” Brandon Marshall said. “We just have to make adjustments.”

COLTS: They bullied the 49ers on the road and returned home to outlast the Seahawks. Andrew Luck finds a way to win, and belief in him is growing by leaps and bounds thanks to help from T.Y. Hilton and Coby Fleener. Trent Richardson will keep defenses honest, but the difference between the Colts and Texans is the difference between Luck and Matt Schaub.

BENGALS : They’ve beaten the Packers and Patriots at home, a sign they’re ready to take the next step. Tom Brady’s consecutive game TD streak was ended by a defense missing Michael Johnson and Leon Hall. Kudos to defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer.

CHIEFS: Andy Reid and Alex Smith. Alex Smith and Andy Reid. And another defense that can make the victim sound like a sore loser.

“I don’t think it was them ― I think it was us,” Titans running back Chris Johnson said after 10 carries for 17 yards. “A lot of mistakes were made.”

Then there are the Bullies On The Block:

49ERS: They’ve got their swagger back and are playing defense with a ferocity unknown to mankind even without Aldon Smith and Patrick Willis. Don’t sleep on Jim Harbaugh.

SEAHAWKS: Russell Wilson shouldn’t be running for 102 yards, it’s too hazardous to his health. He won’t have to when Percy Harvin returns. Allowing 34 points to the Colts is an aberration for a swaggerlicious defense.

PACKERS : A ground game (Eddie Lacy) for Aaron Rodgers, and pass rush help (Nick Perry) for Clay Matthews.

RAVENS: Ray Rice (hip flexor) is rounding into form, and Terrell Suggs is a quarterback’s worst nightmare. Haven’t forgotten how to win just because Ray Lewis and Ed Reed are gone. Don’t sleep on John Harbaugh.

PATRIOTS: Tom Brady is counting the days until tight end Rob Gronkowski returns. The Dolphins are not ready to challenge for AFC East supremacy.

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Jimmy Graham is just unfair.

Drew Brees doing Drew Brees things and a reborn defense under Rob Ryan (landing on his feet after the Dallas disaster) continue to get much of the credit for the Saints’ 5-0 start, but their young tight end might be the most dangerous player in the sport right now who isn’t named Peyton Manning.

Graham had 10 catches for 135 yards in New Orleans’ 26-18 win at Chicago on Sunday, giving him 100-plus receiving yards for the fourth game in a row. Graham is the first tight end in NFL history to have separate four-game streaks of 100-plus receiving yards.

Athletic tight ends are nothing new, but Graham is so freakishly athletic that he’s threatening to revolutionize the position. He is a mismatch against linebackers as a conventional tight end because of his terrific speed and an even bigger mismatch as a slot receiver because the 6-foot-7, 260-pounder overwhelms cornerbacks with his size.

Jimmy Graham makes a catch against the Bears.Getty Images

Graham also is a problem matchup for the Saints’ salary-cap experts. He is in the final year of his contract and no doubt will fight if New Orleans tries to apply the franchise tag on him as a tight end.

If the Saints insist on tagging him, Graham will want it to be as a receiver because the franchise number for that position is expected to be almost double (nearly $12 million) the projected $6.7 million franchise number for tight ends.

It’s a battle that could get ugly. But for now, Graham is only doing beautiful things for the Saints and his pocketbook.

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It didn’t take long for the Dolphins to come back to reality, and it’s not terribly difficult to pinpoint the reason why — their woeful offensive line can’t protect Ryan Tannehill.

A 3-0 start that included two gut-check road wins has dissolved into 3-2 after Sunday’s 26-23 home loss to the Ravens in which Miami’s young quarterback endured yet another terrible beating.

Tannehill was sacked six times, raising his season total to 24 and putting him on pace for 77 for the season. That would break the all-time NFL record of 76 sacks endured by then-rookie David Carr in the Texans’ 2002 expansion season.

And if that weren’t a strong enough indictment of the Miami linemen, they embarrassed themselves further by failing to produce a single rushing first down all afternoon.

Carr’s defenders have argued all those sacks stunted the former No. 1 overall pick’s development, and the Dolphins risk doing the same with a quarterback who already has shown much more promise than Carr ever did.

Miami GM Jeff Ireland only has himself to blame for this predicament, too, after allowing former Pro Bowl left tackle Jake Long to walk in free agency while lavishing big free-agent bucks on the likes of underachieving receiver Mike Wallace.

Long’s replacement — 2012 second-round pick Jonathan Martin — has been especially dismal, but he has plenty of company. Fixing a bad offensive line in the middle of a season is an especially difficult task, which means the Dolphins’ sudden tailspin could have staying power.

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The Raiders apparently don’t subscribe to the “Just Lose, Baby” credo. They are blowing their shot at either Teddy Bridgewater or Jadeveon Clowney. The Jaguars certainly would draft Bridgewater should they continue to suck so much they secure the first overall pick. The Browns, with two No. 1 picks after trading Trent Richardson to the Colts, will likely try to move up for a shot at Bridgewater.

Both the Giants and Steelers would be salivating over Clowney because neither will be eyeing a quarterback.  If Giants GM Jerry Reese is lucky enough to land a Monster of the Meadowlands like Clowney as a bookend for Jason Pierre-Paul, he can use the rest of the draft and free agency to find offensive linemen.

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How important has the tight end become? Julius Thomas caught two TD passes from Peyton Manning, Jason Witten caught one from Romo, Vernon Davis caught one from Colin Kaepernick, Brent Celek caught one from Nick Foles, Lance Kendricks caught one from Sam Bradford, Jim Dray caught one from Carson Palmer, Charles Clay caught one from Ryan … as we already mentioned Graham, the best of the breed, making 10 catches for 135 yards (and no TDs — slacker!).

The Eli Manning Giants, for any number of reasons, have de-emphasized the tight end. Brandon Myers has five catches for 68 yards in his past three games. Good luck with Tony Gonzalez on Monday night, Rex.