Cowboys say there are no plans to go with Tony Romo over Dak Prescott

Are the Dallas Cowboys heading the way of last season’s Denver Broncos?

That’s not to ask whether the Cowboys will wind up as Super Bowl champions, but rather how they’re going to handle their quarterback situation.

For two weeks in a row, the Cowboys have sputtered on offense, going two for 24 on third down in a two-point win over Minnesota and a three-point loss to the New York Giants.

There’s no question rookie quarterback Dak Prescott has been a sensation — he’s second only to fellow Cowboys rookie Ezekiel Elliott in Pro Bowl voting — but Dallas has to be at least mulling the pros and cons of turning back to the practiced hand of Tony Romo as the regular season draws to a close.

Remember how Peyton Manning came back after being benched and replaced the upstart Brock Osweiler at the end of the year, leading the Broncos to a third Lombardi Trophy?

After Sunday night’s loss, both Cowboys Coach Jason Garrett and owner Jerry Jones said there’s no plan in place for a quarterback swap. But everybody knows how quickly the winds can shift in the NFL.

Jones said it would require to be a “much more definitive situation” for Romo to replace Prescott.

“Principally, one would be just not having Dak available,” the owner said. “I sure know that you can lose a player period in the times we’re in in the NFL. If you do, if you’ve got another one behind him, the higher the caliber one behind him, the sounder team you’ve got. I think that’s where we are.”

Against the Giants, the Cowboys collected two fumbles and an interception, and got 107 yards rushing from Elliott, yet were shut out in the second half and finished with an underwhelming 260 yards. Prescott is far from solely to blame, but he certainly deserves part of it.

“There were some tight throws to be made,” Garrett said. “At times we made some of those throws, other times, we didn’t. At times we’ve made some of the contested catches, other times we didn’t. As we go forward, we have to continue to improve in that area.”

The Cowboys, who already have secured a spot in the playoffs, finish with Tampa Bay, Detroit and Philadelphia. Although none of those teams has put up great defensive numbers, each is capable of a strong performance on that side of the ball.

Murky MVP race

There are only three games left in the regular season, and there’s no clear leader for this year’s league most-valuable-player award.

There are a lot of quarterbacks having excellent years, among them New England’s Tom Brady, Detroit’s Matthew Stafford, Atlanta’s Matt Ryan, Kansas City’s Alex Smith, and Oakland’s Derek Carr.

The only defensive player to win the award was Lawrence Taylor in 1986, but Denver linebacker Von Miller and Oakland defensive end Khalil Mack deserve to be in the conversation this season.

Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown is the only rookie to win that crown, but the Cowboys’ Elliott has certainly put up MVP-worthy numbers in his inaugural season.

Or what about someone from a losing team? Arizona is 5-7-1, yet running back David Johnson has been outstanding for the Cardinals. The only MVP from a team that was somewhat close to .500 was Detroit’s Barry Sanders, who shared it with Green Bay’s Brett Favre in 1997 when the Lions finished 9-7.

Silver lining

The Miami Dolphins are dealing with the best kind of bad news, or maybe it’s the worst kind of good news.

Although quarterback Ryan Tannehill was originally believed to have suffered a torn anterior cruciate ligament on Sunday, an MRI exam on Monday revealed that he only sprained the ACL and medial collateral ligament in his left knee.

It’s unclear whether Tannehill will be able to return this season, but at least he won’t have to undergo the six to nine months of rehabilitation associated with the more serious injury.

Matt Moore takes over at quarterback for the playoff-minded Dolphins, who have won seven of eight after losing three of their first four.