Cowboys QB Romo again taking Wednesdays off to start season

IRVING, Texas It worked last year, so Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys see no reason to change it this year.

Romo went through the walkthroughs on Wednesday’s, and then took the practice portion of the day off. He will continue that routine to start this season, Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said.

Romo participated more in the offseason program than before and there had been some thought that his routine would include Wednesday’s going into this season. But he still has to manage his surgically-repaired back, and taking off Wednesdays proved to be a good thing for him.

Romo, 35, is coming off an MVP-caliber season in which he led the league in completion percentage (69.9) and passer rating (113.2). He finished the season throwing for 3,705 yards with 34 touchdowns and nine interceptions.

Romo, who had back surgeries following the 2012 and 2013 seasons, has also learned how to manage his back with time. He went through four consecutive practices once this past training camp, and feels he knows how much torque he can put on it on a weekly basis.

That’s why Romo had significant input into the decision to take the first Wednesday of the season off.

“Like with all players, it’s a lot about the communication that we have, the player and our training staff, the player and the coaches,” Garrett said. “You have to have open dialogue and open communication as to how they feel and how they’re going to respond to the work. We made that decision collectively, but Tony certainly has a strong voice in that.”

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