Forget the drama surrounding the Dallas Cowboys' Terrell Owens, the wide receiver who spurned the Ravens in 2004 in favor of the Philadelphia Eagles.
The biggest potential headache for the Ravens' defense is not T.O., but T.R.
Tony Romo is ranked among the top 10 quarterbacks in the NFL in several passing categories, and he orchestrates a Dallas pass offense ranked eighth in the league.
"He can do some amazing things with the football," said Ravens coach John Harbaugh, who saw enough of Romo when Harbaugh coached the Eagles' secondary last season. "He's got an incredibly quick release, he's got a tremendously quick release on the run, and he's got tremendous vision. He can find a receiver when you don't think he's even looking at him. Sometimes, I think he's got eyes in the side of his head, and he finds a way to get guys the ball."
If the Cowboys harbor any hope of securing one of the two NFC wild-card spots for the playoffs, they will need a healthy and productive Romo.
Under Romo, Dallas is 8-3 this season. But when Romo sat out three straight games with a broken pinkie on his right, throwing hand, the team lost two of three.
Wade Phillips, whose tenure as head coach might be limited by the presence of offensive coordinator and head-coach-in-waiting Jason Garrett, might need a Romo-directed run to the playoffs to keep his job.
"I think he's one of the top quarterbacks in the league," Phillips said. "I mean, he's done it all, and he's won a lot of games here in the last two years that I've been with him."
Despite missing games in weeks 7 through 9, Romo ranks second in the NFL in passer rating (98.3) and is tied for fourth in passing touchdowns (24) and 300-yard games (six).
He has succeeded because he's distributing the football to a number of teammates. Owens is tied for fourth in the NFL with nine touchdowns, Jason Witten ranks second and third, respectively, among tight ends in yards (815) and receptions (69). Marion Barber is sixth among running backs with 49 catches, and tight end Martellus Bennett became the third rookie in team history to catch a touchdown pass in three straight games.
Romo has been especially prolific at Texas Stadium, which will be replaced by the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium for the 2009 season. In six games at home this season, of which the Cowboys won five, Romo has completed 63.1 percent of his passes (128 of 203), averaged 284 yards and thrown 17 touchdown passes against just four interceptions.
