FRISCO, Texas -- No one knows if Tony Romo has thrown his last pass as a member of the Dallas Cowboys, but it would surprise no one if he has, considering the team and the city are intoxicated by rookie quarterback Dak Prescott’s youthful exuberance.
The most prolific passer in franchise history will be a backup for the foreseeable future.
It's not fair, but neither is life. No one -- not even Romo -- can be surprised at the the club’s decision with the Cowboys in the midst of an eight-game winning streak, which is tied for the longest in franchise history.
Besides, Jerry Jones and his son Stephen each released test balloons on their weekly radio shows this week that suggested Romo would be amenable to being the backup.
Romo has never been a confrontational dude, an in-your-face yeller and screamer, so he will grudgingly accept his new assignment. He'll continue to help the rookie in meetings and on Sundays, while waiting for an opportunity to lead the team again.
Prescott, the 135th player taken in the 2016 NFL draft, who arrived at training camp as the third-string quarterback, has played better than any scout, coach or teammate could've envisioned.
But that's not the only reason he has relegated Romo.
The Cowboys have the NFC's best record -- a two-game lead in the NFC East -- and late in games he plays with a poise usually reserved for veterans.
Twice in the final two minutes Sunday night, he led Dallas from behind in their dramatic 35-30 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field.
The reality is that when Romo replaced Drew Bledsoe as the Cowboys’ starter a decade ago, it was because he was having the same impact on the city and the team that Prescott is having now.
A decade from now, we’ll probably be having the same type of conversation about Prescott’s eventual replacement and remembering when he took Romo’s job.
Prescott gives the offense a read-option element Romo doesn't, and playcaller Scott Linehan has built a scheme around Prescott's skill set that has allowed the Cowboys to have one of the league's most prolific offenses.
He has passed a litany of tests in the season’s first 10 weeks, and at some point, we must accept that he’s a good player. There’s nothing fluky about his performance or the Cowboys’ record.
Everything you see from Prescott is sustainable, and as a rookie, you can expect him to improve weekly.
There's no way to slowly work Romo into the Cowboys' offense. The starter receives almost all the snaps in practice each week. The backup gets one series each Friday and spends the rest of the week working with the scout team.
Talk to anyone who has played with Romo and they'll tell you no one is more competitive. Expect the competition between the scout team and starters to get amplified as Romo tries to show all the Cowboys' decision-makers just how much he has left.
Then again, the questions about Romo these days aren’t about his talent; they’re about his health.
In 2014, his last full season, Romo was second-team All-Pro after throwing 34 touchdown passes with 10 interceptions and leading the NFL in passer rating.
But since the start of the 2015 season, he has fractured his collarbone twice and suffered a compression fracture in his back that has forced him to miss this season's first eight games. He has missed all or part of 22 of the last 24 games.
Unless the Prescott we've seen during the season's first eight games falls apart, Romo's days of starting in Dallas are over.
That will make a fan base that hasn’t really appreciated just how good he has been as a starter -- 78-49 record with 247 touchdowns and 117 interceptions -- happy because he's synonymous with the mediocrity that has plagued the Cowboys since 1997.
The Cowboys entered this season with a 152-152 record and two playoff wins since the 1996 season ended, and only Washington and Detroit (both 1992) have a longer NFC Championship Game drought.
When the season ends, Jerry Jones will need to make the same tough decision he has made in the past with Emmitt Smith, Larry Allen and DeMarcus Ware among others.
He can release Romo or trade him for a conditional pick or two based on his health.
This league doesn't have nearly enough quarterbacks to go around, so there will be plenty of suitors. Or, Romo could decide he doesn't want to go to a new city and organization at this point in his life with a wife and two young kids, so he could walk away from the game.
A lot of decisions must be made in the coming months. Who starts at quarterback for the Cowboys isn't one of them.