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IRVING, Texas -- The Cowboys made it clear they will become a two-tight end personnel team after the draft.

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Jerry Jones invoked the New England Patriots when discussing the scheme following the selection of San Diego State tight end Gavin Escobar in the second round. The Cowboys also had Notre Dame’s Tyler Eifert graded as a first-round pick.

With Jason Witten (who is coming off a 110-catch season), James Hanna and Escobar, the Cowboys are in position to attempt to simulate what Tom Brady does with Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez.

We offer a Q&A with ESPN Boston’s Mike Reiss for an explanation of how New England uses its “12 personnel.”

Archer: What makes the Patriots' use of the two-tight end package work so well?

Reiss: It starts with the unique talents of the tight ends themselves. Rob Gronkowski (6-foot-6, 265 pounds) is obviously a very tough matchup for a linebacker or safety. He's more likely to be aligned closest to the offensive tackle, but because he runs so well, the Patriots will also split him out wide. He's equally as effective as a blocker or pass-catcher, making him a true "combination" tight end. Aaron Hernandez (6-1, 245) is a nice complement to Gronkowski. He is more receiver-like and thus is split out wide more often or on the move, although he does align close to the tackle on occasion and is competitive as an in-line blocker even though it's not his forte. We've seen the Patriots run the same offense with different tight ends and it hasn't been as effective (e.g., last season's playoffs when Gronkowski was out with injury), so I think the first key is to acknowledge that it's more about the players than the scheme when it comes to the Patriots' two-tight end package and its success.

Archer: How does it differ, in your mind, from how other teams use the package?

Reiss: Probably the biggest thing is how many formations and adjustments they can run out of it, which comes back to the versatility and unique skills of the top two tight ends, Gronkowski and Hernandez. They could be empty in the package, with both tight ends split out wide, or more tightly compact in a traditional look with both tight ends aligned next to the tackles. Sometimes they play up-tempo with it. Other times they slow it down. So there are really so many things you can do out of the package, which again is tied to the uniqueness of Gronkowski and Hernandez. When one of those players has been injured, the package isn't as dynamic, and at times in those situations, the Patriots will use a third receiver over a second tight end.

Archer: How do most teams combat it with their defensive personnel?

Reiss: I'd say most teams combat it with a nickel package, essentially treating Hernandez as a receiver. When that happens, the Patriots have made a concerted effort to turn to the running game, feeling that a two-TE package should be able to win that matchup against a smaller defense. The results were uneven last season when it was two-TE versus nickel, in part due to some injuries on the offensive line. One of the clear-cut examples of it working to a T was last year's Sept. 30 win over the Bills, when they played a small nickel the entire game (it could have even been a dime but they listed 6-1, 220-pound safety Bryan Scott as a linebacker) and the Patriots powered through them for 247 rushing yards. Other teams have stayed in base, but it takes special personnel to do that and not get beaten by the tight ends in the passing game.

Archer: Is there ever a downside to it, like shrinking the field too much?

Reiss: If we wanted to nitpick from a Patriots perspective, we could say that relying so heavily on the two-TE package when your top receiver is more of a slot option (Wes Welker from 2007 to '12) means that your three best pass-catchers all do their best work in the middle of the field. So I guess there is a part of it where "shrinking the field" could come into play, but I don't think that's a reason not to do it. If you have two special tight ends, they can be matchup-busters and you can dictate terms based on their versatility. If the defense plays nickel against you, pound it at that team. If the defense plays base personnel, spread that defense out and let it rip.

Archer: Has the package all but eliminated the fullback in the offense?

Reiss: Yes, for the most part. The Patriots used tight end Michael Hoomanawanui in a fullback role at times last season. Other times, most often closer to the goal line, they used an offensive lineman as a fullback. But overall, when running so much of the offense with two tight ends, you're most often going to see two receivers and a running back paired with them unless it's a short-yardage situation. In terms of building the 53-man roster, one point that Bill Belichick has made is that the fullback is basically competing against a running back, tight end or linebacker for a spot, and it often can come down to special teams contributions. The Patriots didn't carry a pure fullback last season.

New England quarterback Tom Brady signed a team-friendly contract extension this week that helps the Patriots create room under their salary cap.

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As soon as the story hit the Internet, Dallas Cowboys fans flooded all forms of social media with demands that Tony Romo sign a similar team-friendly deal with the Cowboys whenever his contract gets restructured.

Whatever.

If Romo chooses to take less money from the Cowboys, fine. But he doesn't owe it to the Cowboys to do so. And if he wants every cent his agent can wrangle from the Cowboys, good for him.

And if Romo takes that route, he shouldn't receive any flak from his adoring public.

How many of y'all would take less money so your company could hire another quality employee? I ran it past my boss Tuesday afternoon, and he couldn't stop laughing. Frankly, he's probably still chuckling.

Some people suggested Romo has already made enough money because he signed a six-year, $65 million deal in 2007.

Ridiculous.

How much money is enough money is always relative. Folks who make $25,000 a year probably think $50,000 is enough. Folks who earn $100,000 probably think $250,000 is enough. Folks who make $500,000 probably think $1 million is enough. And those who earn $1 million probably think $10 million is enough.

Get the point?

More important, each person must make that decision for himself. It's not up to me or anyone else to tell someone how much money is enough. After all, Jerry Jones ain't offering hometown discount tickets for fans even after his team has gone 128-128 since 1997 with one playoff win. Nor is Jerry taking a pay cut.

Read more here.

Last week, there were reports regarding the cap space for the Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots and how nearly 10 players take a good percentage of it.

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The 2013 salary cap for NFL teams will be nearly $121 million.

Tom Curran of CSNNE.com reported the Patriots will have $65.9 million of cap space assigned to nine players, including quarterback Tom Brady's team-high $21.8 million cap figure.

Albert Breer of NFL Network discovered the Ravens will hand out $69 million of cap space to 10 players. Terrell Suggs has the highest figure at $13.02 million.

So what about the Cowboys? After adding up the figures, the top 10 salary-cap hits total $89.6 million, with quarterback Tony Romo leading the way at $16.8 million.

When it comes time to get under the cap -- and the Cowboys are roughly $20 million over -- reducing cap figures for several players will be important. It makes sense for the Cowboys to reduce Romo's cap hit by giving him an extension because it'll give the team flexibility to sign free agents in 2013.

If the Cowboys don't want to reduce Romo's cap figure and let him play out the 2013 season, then it'd limit what the team could do in free agency.

Brandon Carr has the second-highest cap hit at $16.3 million, and it's in his contract that his deal will be restructured. DeMarcus Ware ($11.3 million) has the third-highest cap number, and his deal also could be reworked.

The Cowboys have two interesting decisions to make with RT Doug Free ($10.02 million) and NT Jay Ratliff ($7 million). Free and Ratliff could become cap casualties, but it will also be interesting if both players return at reduced salaries.

If the Cowboys release Free and or Ratliff, they better have a replacement ready.

If Free is cut, that'd leave Jermey Parnell as the starting right tackle. Ratliff's replacement might not be on the roster. You could move Jason Hatcher to defensive tackle in the new 4-3 scheme, and Jerry Jones talked about the possibility of Tyrone Crawford also moving inside from end.

Other possibilities: Chris Canty was released by the New York Giants last week, and free agent Henry Melton of the Chicago Bears could be an expensive option to replace Ratliff.

Any moves regarding the salary cap comes with a risk. When you're over the cap like the Cowboys are, there are hard decisions to make.

Here's the Top 10 Cowboys in terms of cap numbers, along with their base salaries for 2013.

1. Tony Romo (cap number $16.8 million, base salary $11.5 million)
2. Brandon Carr (cap number $16.3 million, base salary $14.3 million)
3. DeMarcus Ware (cap number $11.3 million, base salary $5.5 million)
4. Doug Free (cap number $10.2 million, base salary $7 million)
5. Miles Austin (cap number $8.3 million, base salary $6.7 million)
6. Jason Witten (cap number $8 million, base salary $5.5 million)
7. Jay Ratliff (cap number $7 million, base salary $5 million)
8. Dan Connor (cap number $4.3 million, base salary $3 million)
9. Gerald Sensabaugh (cap number $3.8 million, base salary $3 million)
10. Orlando Scandrick (cap nunmber $3.78 million, base salary $2 million)

Can the New York Giants' pass rush perk up and help a Big Blue defense that held the Falcons offense scoreless during the playoffs last season repeat that performance Sunday in Atlanta?

Can the two men the Dallas Cowboys brought in to be shutdown cornerbacks keep the Steelers receivers covered while Ben Roethlisberger scrambles to keep plays alive?

Can the Washington Redskins scheme, adjust and work around their defensive personnel shortages for another week, keeping Trent Richardson in check and daring Brandon Weeden to beat them in Cleveland?

These are the key storylines Sunday as the NFC East race spins into its final weeks. Amend them with different opponents, and they are likely to remain the key storylines in this division the rest of the way. Although the quarterbacks get all the attention in this division and statistically there's not a top-10 defense in the bunch, the team that plays the best defense in these final three games is the one most likely to emerge with the division title.

The NFC East race is a jumble. The defending champion Giants hold a one-game lead, but they have road games the next two weeks in Atlanta and Baltimore and are far from assured of winning out. The Falcons and Ravens are a combined 11-1 at home this season and 65-11 the past five. Sure, New York is a defending Super Bowl champion that has shown it can win anywhere, but there's not a team out there that could safely assume it would go 2-0 in those games. The Giants are going to have to play the way they played in January, not the way they've played for most of the past month and a half, if they're going to keep control of the division. To do that, they need to be more ferocious on defense.

The Giants have 31 sacks -- tied for 12th most in the league. Jason Pierre-Paul leads them with 6.5. Osi Umenyiora has six. Justin Tuck has only three.

The numbers are fine, but they're not Giants numbers. This is a pass rush that took out Matt Ryan, Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady en route to its second Super Bowl title in five years. Unless someone gets more than one sack a game the rest of the way, they're going to finish the regular season without anyone in double figures. That doesn't compute, and it has as much to do with why the Giants haven't already put away this division as anything.

It's possible that seeing Ryan and the Falcons will rekindle memories of how dominant they were up front 11 months ago, and if that's the case, the Giants could be the team that gets on the defensive run that gives them the division title.

The Cowboys sit one game back of the Giants, tied with the Redskins for second place. Statistically fine for much of the season, the defense has endured a brutal rash of injuries. Both starting inside linebackers, a starting safety, a starting defensive lineman and their nickel cornerback are on injured reserve. This week, star pass-rusher DeMarcus Ware (elbow) and starting cornerback Morris Claiborne (concussion) have already missed practice. Nose tackle Jay Ratliff remains in doubt, and his backup, Josh Brent, is out because of his well-publicized issues. The Cowboys are running short of players on defense, which could take them right out of this picture if it continues.

But they've made it this far in spite of their deficiencies. They've won four of their past five games. Running back DeMarco Murray is back in the fold, red-hot wide receiver Dez Bryant apparently is determined to play in spite of a broken finger, and the offense is humming.

The defense has to hold it together, and the key is in that secondary. Ware and Anthony Spencer are playing well at outside linebacker, and the defensive line is average and going to stay that way. The defense is counting on Claiborne and fellow corner Brandon Carr to shut down receivers, especially in a game such as this Sunday's against Pittsburgh's receivers. If Claiborne can't go, the responsibility falls to Sterling Moore, who has looked good in his short time in Dallas.

Carr and Claiborne have been occasionally brilliant but generally inconsistent in coverage this season. The price the Cowboys paid for Carr in free-agent money and for Claiborne in draft picks says they're big-time talents who need to play that way. If they can shut down opposing receivers the next three weeks, the Cowboys' chances of coming from behind and stealing this division are a lot better.

In Washington, all eyes are on rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III, who has a knee injury and may not play Sunday in Cleveland.

But the Redskins aren't really worried about their offense. They can run the ball with Alfred Morris, Pierre Garcon can get open down the field for backup Kirk Cousins, and they can score enough points.

Defense has been the Redskins' issue all season. They rank 28th in total defense and 31st against the pass. A secondary that didn't look all that great to begin with is now missing two starting safeties and a starting cornerback. The defense is also missing its best pass-rusher, Brian Orakpo, and starting defensive lineman Adam Carriker. It has been a struggle.

Yet the Redskins, which have managed to win their past four games to move within a game of the Giants, have a real chance. They have looked bad on defense for long stretches during the streak -- the second half against Dallas on Thanksgiving, the first half against Baltimore last week -- but they've managed to hold on. Coordinator Jim Haslett is doing an excellent job of changing up the game plan from week to week and half to half to maximize any advantage he can find. Outside linebacker Rob Jackson can be a disruptive pass-rusher for a half. DeAngelo Hall can be a decent cover corner for a couple of drives.

They mix, match and patch it together, and so far it's not falling apart. The key will be for the Redskins to keep walking that tightrope, and if they can do it for three more games, they absolutely have a chance.

So if you're trying to make sense of this NFC East race as it hits the home stretch, look not to the big-name quarterbacks and receivers but instead to the defenses. If one of these three teams can do something on defense it hasn't been able to do so far, that could make enough of a difference to decide the division.

Tony Romo was brilliant Sunday night in the Dallas Cowboys' victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. But every quarterback who plays the Eagles these days is basically a mix of Tom Brady, Johnny Unitas and Flash Gordon, and anyway Romo's been good for a while now. He has 10 touchdown passes and two interceptions in his last five games, and the Cowboys have gone 3-2 in that stretch to keep kicking around on the fringe of the NFC playoff race.

What was different about the Cowboys' offense on Sunday was the running back. And if you were still of the opinion that the Cowboys' running game could be the same with Felix Jones as it is with DeMarco Murray, this game had to have cured you. In his first game back since he sprained his foot in a Week 5 loss in Baltimore, Murray ran for 83 yards and a touchdown on 23 carries. Spectacular numbers? No, though there were some runs that made you gasp as Murray showed off a power and speed combination that's been absent in the Cowboys' run game since early October. But Murray was, above all else, effective. And the result was a balanced game plan of 33 run plays, 29 passes and an offense that moved the ball effectively all night. Per Jean-Jacques Taylor:

Murray's impact is bigger than any stat you want to discuss after the Dallas Cowboys beat the Philadelphia Eagles, 38-33, on Sunday night. He gives the Cowboys a toughness and a physical mentality they lack when he's not in the lineup. Murray is the reason Tony Romo had his best game, passing for 303 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Murray is the reason Jason Garrett didn't abandon the run with the Cowboys trailing by a touchdown at halftime like he usually does. He's the reason offensive line coach Bill Callahan was laughing and joking with all of his starters after the game. And he's the reason why more than one lineman talked about Garrett's commitment to running the ball the entire game.

Murray is back, then, just in time. No, not because the Cowboys needed to beat the Eagles. They could have found a way to beat the Eagles if they'd held a contest last week and let a rotating group of fans play running back. The Eagles haven't won since there were leaves on the trees and Mitt Romney still thought he had a chance. But assuming Murray and his foot came through Sunday night's game healthy, his return has come at precisely the right time for the Cowboys.

They face tough, physical defensive fronts the next two weeks, first in Cincinnati and then at home against the Steelers. These are games it will be difficult for the Cowboys to win, games in which they will justifiably be underdogs. But if they're to have a chance against either team, they will have to be physical up front. With their offensive line the way it is, that's not easy to do. But Murray brings an element that helps them overcome the line problems. The same way Romo finds a way to make plays with his feet when protection breaks down, Murray is the kind of runner who likes to overcome difficulty. He's tough. He absorbs contact. He's used to having to try and make something out of nothing, and he digs it. The "mentality" about which Jacques is writing is not present when the back is Jones or Phillip Tanner or Lance Dunbar. There aren't many backs who bring it. Murray is one, and the Cowboys' offense works much better when he's in it.

The shame for the Cowboys, and for Murray, is that the young man is bound to get injured again. His history and the way he runs -- toward contact, lowering his head, etc. -- practically insist on it. The Cowboys look at Murray as one of their long-term building blocks, but the likelihood is that they'll always be dealing with some physical situation that either limits him or keeps him off the field. For now, though, as they look ahead to their final four games and a still-breathing chance at making this year's postseason, they should be thankful he's back on the field and enjoy it while it lasts. Because as great as Romo and Dez Bryant and Jason Witten and Miles Austin are, the Cowboys are simply a different offense with Murray.

Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III earned a perfect score of 158.3 in Sunday's victory on the traditional NFL passer rating scale. He's the fourth quarterback in the last five years to do that in a game. Yet his Total QBR -- the stat that measures a quarterback's contribution to his team's chances of winning on a scale from 0-100 -- was 93.7. Obviously an excellent score, but the lowest among the four perfect-passer-rating games of the last half-decade.

The reason, according to the folks at ESPN Stats & Information who administer the Total QBR stat, is Griffin's fumble late in the first half with the Redskins leading just 14-3. Washington recovered the fumble, so there was no harm done, but the fact of the fumble with the game still in doubt does damage to the player's QBR. That play dropped Griffin's from 99.7 to 93.5 at that moment. None of the other guys -- Tom Brady in 2010, Drew Brees in 2009 or Kurt Warner in 2008 -- fumbled in their perfect-passer-rating games.

For the week, Griffin's Total QBR ranks third so far in the NFL behind those of only the Saints' Brees and the Patriots' Brady. For the season to date, Griffin's Total QBR of 70.7 ranks eighth in the league.

Some other NFC East-related Total QBR notes from Sunday:

The Dallas Cowboys' Tony Romo had a total QBR of 19.5 in the first half Sunday against the Browns, but he had a Total QBR of 78.0 in the second half and overtime as the Cowboys came back to win.

The Philadelphia Eagles' Nick Foles posted a Total QBR of 7.2 on Sunday in Washington in the first NFL start of his career. That's the fourth-lowest by a rookie in his starting debut over the last five years, trailing only the debuts of Brandon Weeden, Ryan Tannehill and Jimmy Clausen. It's also worse than any game Michael Vick played over that same time span.

If you want a high Total QBR these days, you want to be playing quarterback against the Eagles' defense. Through the first six games of the season, opposing quarterbacks had a Total QBR of 28.2 against Philadelphia. But in the four games since the Eagles fired defensive coordinator Juan Castillo and replaced him with Todd Bowles, opponents have a league-high Total QBR of 87.1 to go with a staggering 78.4 completion percentage, 9.4 yards per pass attempt, 11 touchdown passes and no interceptions.

IRVING, Texas – Tony Romo’s November successes have been well documented.

His 20-3 record is the best by a quarterback in the Super Bowl era. Daryle Lamonica went 19-4-2 in November. New England’s Tom Brady has the second-best winning percentage with a 31-10 record, followed by Baltimore’s Joe Flacco (15-5).

Romo has been unbeatable at home in November, which is good news for the Cowboys as they begin a three-game homestand Sunday against Cleveland.

Romo is 13-0 at home in November with 32 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He has 10 multi-touchdown pass games and the Cowboys have scored 30 or more points seven times.

“It’s an important time that we need to obviously play good football so our team’s done a good job in November,” Romo said. “I don’t think there’s any rhyme or reason.”

In the final 20 days before the start of the regular season, we are counting down the top 20 players in the NFC East. For a full explanation, see this post. And if you want to read any of the other posts that have run since we started this series, you can find them all here, in this link.

No. 1 -- Eli Manning, Giants QB

This wasn't easy, and the fact that it wasn't easy to pick a two-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback as the best player in the division says a ton about the rest of the players in the division. It was a very tough, close call between Manning and Cowboys linebacker DeMarcus Ware for this spot, and I gave more than a passing thought to Eagles running back LeSean McCoy, who finished third.

But in the end, Manning deserves the spot. He's earned it by performing with incredible consistency at a high level and in the biggest of spots. He ranks behind only Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Tom Brady and Matt Hasselbeck in passing yards among active quarterbacks, and each of those players has at least a three-year head start on him. He's fifth (behind those same four guys) in touchdown passes among active quarterbacks. Only Peyton Manning, Brady, Brees and Ben Roethlisberger among active quarterbacks have engineered more game-winning drives, and only Peyton Manning and Brady have more comeback victories.

So Eli is a top-level quarterback in terms of production (and in spite of a stubborn, lingering reputation to the contrary), but what truly sets him apart as a great player is the way he's performed during the two Super Bowl title runs the Giants have made with him under center. He has a 61.5 career completion percentage, a 17-to-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio in his 11 career playoff games and has led the team from behind to beat Bill Belichick, Brady and the New England Patriots in two separate Super Bowls. He's the unquestioned leader of his team, the calming influence which Giants players know they can count on in tough times, a key to his team's uncanny ability to handle adversity and a proven champion without whose individual performance those Super Bowl titles would not have been possible. The best quarterback in the NFC East is the most clutch quarterback in the NFL right now and is the division's best player.

The rest of the rankings:

2. DeMarcus Ware, LB, Cowboys
3. LeSean McCoy, RB, Eagles RB
4. Trent Cole, DE, Eagles DE
5. Jason Pierre-Paul, DE, Giants
6. Hakeem Nicks, WR, Giants
7. Tony Romo, QB, Cowboys
8. Justin Tuck, DE, Giants
9. Jason Babin, DE, Eagles
10. Victor Cruz, WR, Giants
11. London Fletcher, LB, Redskins
12. Michael Vick, QB, Eagles
13. Tyron Smith, T, Cowboys
14. Brian Orakpo, LB, Redskins
15. Jason Witten, TE, Cowboys
16. Dez Bryant, WR, Cowboys
17. DeSean Jackson, WR, Eagles
18. Osi Umenyiora, DE, Giants
19. Evan Mathis, G, Eagles
20. Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, Giants

ESPN's Ron Jaworski is ranking the NFL quarterbacks and he's got the Cowboys' Tony Romo at 10th out of 30.

Many of you have questioned Romo's abilities and whether the Cowboys should invest more money in him down the line. Romo has two seasons remaining on his contract and the franchise seems intent on giving him an extension.

Here is some of what Jaworski said about Romo, via NFC East blogger Dan Graziano.

"There's an instinctive awareness to Romo's play that I've always liked," Jaworski said. "He's always been able to move within the pocket, and he's also very good at extending plays outside the pocket, especially moving to his left. That's not easy for a right-handed quarterback to do."

Romo has completed 66.5 percent of his career passes and thrown 149 touchdowns and 72 interceptions. But his inability to take his team deep into the playoffs has raised questions about his long-term future and whether he's an elite quarterback.

Since 2006, the first year Romo became the starting quarterback when he took over for Drew Bledsoe, he's thrown for 20,834 yards, seventh most in the league. Drew Brees has thrown for 28,394 since that time to lead the NFL. Romo's 149 touchdown passes are sixth most since 2006. Brees has 201 touchdown passes to top the list.

Romo is with some elite company numbers-wise -- Tom Brady, Philip Rivers, Eli Manning and Peyton Manning -- but as we've talked about in the past, he needs to push his team to a deep playoff run.

IRVING, Texas – The Cowboys will be represented in the top 10 of the NFL Network’s top 100 players of 2011 feature thanks to DeMarcus Ware.

Incredibly, Ware was not in the top 10 a year ago, finishing 12th. Now the question is whether he will be the highest-ranked defensive player in the poll. The show will air Wednesday at 7 p.m.

New York Jet cornerback Darrelle Revis would seem to be Ware’s biggest competition.

Ware was second in the league in sacks last year with 19.5 He has had at least 11 sacks in a season from 2006-11, including 20 in 2008. Since sacks became an official stat, only Reggie White (105) had more sacks in his first 100 games than Ware (85). White (five) is the only player with more 15-sack seasons in a career than Ware (three).

By the way the only other Cowboys in the top 100 list, as chosen by 448 players from across the league, are Jason Witten (No. 75) and Tony Romo (No. 91).

So what’s the best guess as to Ware’s rank?

You have to think quarterbacks Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady and Drew Brees will be higher. After that it’s a flip of the coin between Ware and Revis but maybe wide receiver Calvin Johnson because of how ridiculous a season he had in 2011.

I’ll guess Ware will be No. 6, behind Revis.

Go ahead and make your predictions in the comments.

IRVING, Texas – When news broke of Terrell Suggs’ torn Achilles last week while playing basketball, many Cowboys fans wondered whether Tony Romo should stop hitting the court in the offseason, too.

Suggs later said the injury occurred during a conditioning test.

“It’s always a concern,” quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson said of a possible non-football injury, “but that can happen out here doing offseason conditioning. It’s definitely a concern, but it’s kind of a personal choice they make.”

Romo turned 32 in April and began his workouts a month or so before the official offseason program began.

“Tony takes great care of himself with his conditioning and his off-football sports, soccer and basketball, I think help him on the football field,” Wilson said.

Wilson said Romo has thrown the ball “great” early in the offseason program.

“He’s really locked in and taken even another step in the leadership role in the weight room and with the guys and getting out there and working with the receivers throwing,” Wilson said. “I think he looks great .”

Romo is signed through next season. He is coming off what the coaches called his best season with 31 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Across the league quarterbacks have been playing better as they get older, like New England’s Tom Brady and even Brett Favre before he finally decided to retire.

“I’ve seen some 32-year-olds look 25 and vice versa, some 25-year-olds look 32,” Wilson said. “If you take care of yourself there’s no reason he shouldn’t be productive for a lot more years.”

INDIANAPOLIS -- Technically Tony Romo is signed through 2016, but that is more from a salary-cap standpoint to help keep his salary cap numbers in check. In reality, Romo is signed through 2013, when the last three years of the restructured contract he signed last summer are voided.

But the Cowboys do not view Romo, who turns 32 in April, as an aging quarterback because he did not play his first three years. The franchise’s best quarterbacks, Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman, retired when they were 37 and 34, respectively.

“I think you always think about your play clock, but more than anything else he did start later in his career than a lot of guys at his position,” coach Jason Garrett said. “I think he’s a young 31 year old. I think he’s got a lot of football left in him.”

Romo has started 77 games in his career and is coming off what Garrett called the quarterback’s best season, in which he threw 31 touchdown passes and had just 10 interceptions.

In three of the last four seasons, Romo has battled through finger, collarbone, rib and hand injuries that cost him 13 games. He did not miss a game in 2011 despite a fractured rib/punctured lung and an injured hand in the 15th game of the season.

Some of the NFL’s best quarterbacks will be in their early or mid-30s when the 2012 season begins, including New England’s Tom Brady (35), New Orleans’ Drew Brees (33) and Philadelphia’s Michael Vick (32). Peyton Manning will be 36 if he can return from a neck injury with Indianapolis or another team in 2012.

“Quarterback is so different,” executive vice president Stephen Jones said. “Guys play quarterback [a long time], obviously some don’t. Troy’s career was shorter than we would’ve liked and he would’ve liked. But quarterbacks play until their 40s. You don’t have issues signing a 30-year-old. At any other position there’s issues there. With a quarterback you don’t have issues with a third contract or even a fourth contract if they can play.”

It does not sound as if the Cowboys will begin the earnest search for Romo’s successor in this draft. They have a plethora of needs to fill elsewhere and there are strong indications the Cowboys will be in play for a veteran backup.

Garrett has used veterans Brad Johnson and Jon Kitna as Romo’s backups since 2007.

“It’s really an important position,” Garrett said. “You need to allocate resources to the position.

"Being a veteran guy with experience is certainly a plus. Stephen McGee has gotten valuable experience at the end of the last two seasons. He has played in games. He has won games for us. He has been involved in two minute drives at the end of games and had success with those … He has played more football the last couple of years. That is helping him.”

IRVING, Texas -- Cowboys’ fans had better hope Jerry Jones was not watching the New York Giants beat Green Bay on Sunday to advance to the NFC Championship Game.

If he was, then they better hope he didn’t watch that game and come away with the feeling that the team he owns and general manages is close to being in the same spot as the Giants.

Ever the optimist, it’s difficult to not hear Jones say to anybody, “We had a 12-point lead on these guys with 5:41 in the fourth quarter at our place, we’re right there.”

It’s that sort of validation that has doomed the Cowboys here in recent years.

After losing to the Giants in the 2007 divisional round, the Cowboys looked at that as a one-time issue because they shut it down late in the regular season when they clinched homefield advantage.

In 2008 they missed the playoffs by a game and they pointed to Tony Romo’s three-game absence because of a broken pinky finger.

In 2009 all was well with the playoff win against Philadelphia and the 34-3 defeat at Minnesota was merely part of the process the team has to take to advance in the postseason.

In 2010 it all came crashing down, costing Wade Phillips his job after a 1-7 start. But Jason Garrett righted the ship and took them to a 5-3 finish and the three losses were by a combined seven points.

Jones put the failings of the defense on Phillips and believed Rob Ryan would turn things around in 2011. The defense was better in part because it could not be worse.

If two coaches of different 3-4 defenses could not make it work well enough, then it’s the personnel.

At least that's how Jones should approach this offseason, which brings us back to the New York win Sunday at Lambeau Field.

The Cowboys had a chance to be in the position of their NFC East rivals but could not beat the Giants at Cowboys Stadium on Dec. 11, 2011 or at MetLife Stadium on Jan. 1.

Undoubtedly Jones – and those who will believe the Cowboys are “this close” to being a true contender – will point to the missed connection between Romo and Miles Austin in the first meeting and the 44-yard catch by Victor Cruz in the second meeting on third-and-7 after the Cowboys cut a 21-0 deficit to 21-14 as the only parts that separate the Cowboys from the Giants.

Or he might look at the Oct. 16 game against New England as positive reinforcement. The Cowboys had the Patriots, who will play in the AFC title game against Baltimore, on the ropes, but saw Tom Brady deliver a late game-winning touchdown drive in a 20-16 affair.

Jones can’t be fooled again.

IRVING, Texas -- On Wednesday I wondered if the Cowboys would make a play for New Orleans guard Carl Nicks in free agency.

Some of you wondered whether paying a guard $7 million a year on average (or more) would be worth it.

To me, absolutely it would be worth it. Why? Guard play is vastly underrated. Not to go all Bryan Broaddus on you here and turn into an NFL scout, but the best quarterbacks in the league right now – Aaron Rodgers, Drew Brees and Tom Brady – excel for a variety of reasons but a lot of it comes from the fact they see clean pockets.

New England guards Logan Mankins and Brian Waters were voted Pro Bowl starters for the AFC. The Saints’ Nicks and Jahri Evans were voted starters for the NFC. Rodgers has T.J. Lang and Josh Sitton at guard as well as Pro Bowler Scott Wells at center.

Quarterbacks can adjust to the outside pass rush. They can see it coming or feel it coming. When the pressure is in their face, they struggle. There’s nowhere to go.

Is guard the new tackle? Maybe teams should start thinking that way.

Some teams playing this weekend already do. Mankins, Sitton, Evans, Chris Snee of the New York Giants, a second-round selection, and Baltimore’s Marshal Yanda, a third-round pick when he came into the league, signed large extensions to stay with their teams.

We have seen six head coaching vacancies open up, with two, Kansas City hiring Romeo Crennel and Jacksonville picking Mike Mularkey, closing up. There is a chance Indianapolis could become vacant if the owner or new general manager think Jim Caldwell isn't fit to lead the Colts.

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Rob Ryan, the Cowboys defensive coordinator, hasn't been heard from since he walked toward the team bus at MetLife Stadium on New Year's Day.

There was a thought Ryan would get a sniff at a few of these vacant jobs, but so far owner Jerry Jones' phone hasn't rung from another team asking for permission to speak with his defensive coordinator.

Is this a surprise?

Ryan did boast how great this defense would be and took some shots at the Philadelphia Eagles, calling them the all-hype team. It was all meant to boost the confidence of his players, which is the right thing to do, but in the process, the Cowboys defense didn't improve much.

You don't get credit for giving up less than the franchise-record 436 points the Cowboys allowed in 2010. The regression of several key players -- Terence Newman and Orlando Scandrick -- and the lack of a consistent pass rush and forcing turnovers were major issues the Cowboys need to address in the offseason.

It appears Newman will not be with us in 2012, and the Cowboys might draft a corner with the 14th pick of the draft, challenging Scandrick and fellow starter Mike Jenkins for playing time.

Anthony Spencer will test the market and could land somewhere else, but the Cowboys need to find someone who can either take pressure off DeMarcus Ware (19 1/2 sacks) or add to it.

The Cowboys did finish plus-4 in the takeaway/giveaway statistic, good for 10th in the NFL. Yet, the Cowboys finished tied for 17th in interceptions with 15.

Ryan's defense needed to perform better and there were too many times when the unit didn't make plays, especially in the fourth quarter. The Cowboys blew five fourth-quarter leads and were shredded by Tom Brady and New England Patriots in losing one game and failed to contain Matthew Stafford and the Detroit Lions in losing a 24-3 lead.

These defensive issues and the Cowboys' failure to reach the postseason probably hold Ryan back from getting a job. You can talk all you want about his beard and long hair and bold statements, but Ryan is a good coach. Results are what determine, in some cases, who gets these interviews for jobs.

Ryan's defense didn't have enough results and the team he played for struggled down the stretch.

Ryan could still get an interview, but if not, it's not the end of the world. If he gets more of his type of players on the roster in 2012, Ryan most likely will become a hot head coaching candidate.