With Dak Prescott locked in as the Cowboys' franchise quarterback for the foreseeable future, Dallas will spend the bulk of its offseason deciding what to do with former starting quarterback Tony Romo.
Romo is under contract in Big D through 2019, so he is likely to be traded for draft compensation if teams are interested in his services. But which organizations are willing to take a flier on the oft-injured veteran?
NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Friday that the Kansas City Chiefs are one team that could be interested in Romo. Rapoport said that K.C. has been looking to upgrade at the QB position after losing in the Divisional Round for the second straight season with Alex Smith under center.
"It was noteworthy when Andy Reid was non-committal to Alex Smith," Rapoport said on NFL Network. "They've made a QB trade in the past, doing so for Alex Smith. They'd have to be considered someone who would be a possibility."
If the Chiefs were to trade for Romo, they would likely cut Smith, Rapoport reports, per sources informed of the situation. The roster move would cost the organization just $7 million in dead money, per Spotrac.
Another team that could land Romo is the Buffalo Bills. If Sean McDermott and the new regime in Western New York choose to release Tyrod Taylor, who is due $12 million in 2017 up from $2 million in 2016, then trading for Romo would be an option.
All this speculation about possible Romo landing spots would be moot of course if the veteran quarterback settles on retirement instead of moving locales. Rapoport reports that retirement is still something that Romo is weighing.
But if Romo is ready and willing to continue his career and is open to any of these trades, it will make for a fascinating marketplace. Romo is the most risk-reward veteran QB that we've seen on the market since Peyton Manning in 2012 and Brett Favre in 2008. Injury-prone but deadly efficient, he could make or break a contender's season.
Whether he would actually be an upgrade over the safe-and-sure Smith or the mobile Taylor will have to be taken into account as both organizations weigh a trade for Romo.
Let the sweepstakes begin.
