Cowboys reportedly working to trade Tony Romo to Broncos or Texans at last minute

Dallas is trying to get something in return for Romo before free agency officially begins

With the clock ticking toward NFL free agency, the Dallas Cowboys are making a last-second push to try and trade Tony Romo, according to a report from Chris Mortensen of ESPN.

It was believed the Cowboys had informed Romo they were planning to release him, but life moves pretty fast in the NFL, and it took a sudden swerve sideways for Dallas and Romo. (Keep up with all the action in our NFL free agency live blog right here.)

According to Mortensen, the two primary contenders for Romo are exactly who you would expect, with the Texans and Broncos apparently trying to hammer out a deal with the Cowboys.

There is also interest in another potential trade along these same lines, with the Broncos talking with the Jets about a trade that would involve Trevor Siemian.

The Jets are also reportedly interested in acquiring Jay Cutler, who is expected to be a free agent once the Bears officially release him upon the start of the league year (they’ve informed Cutler he’s gone and the Bears will be signing Mike Glennon to a lengthy deal).

All along the Texans and Broncos have been the favorites for Romo, although there is increasing chatter about the Texans not being interested in adding another quarterback and just rolling with Brock Osweiler and Tom Savage instead.

Romo would make Houston the clear favorite to win the AFC South, so standing pat would be a disappointing move for the Texans.

The Broncos have been “ready to pursue” Romo for a while now, and adding a veteran superstar quarterback would be nothing new for John Elway, who managed to lure Peyton Manning to Denver when Manning left the Colts after being released. That aggressive decision netted Elway two Super Bowl trips and one ring (not to mention helped him rid himself of Tim Tebow).

Kansas City was considered a darkhorse for Romo, but Chiefs GM John Dorsey told CBSSports.com at the NFL combine that it was “case closed” for them on moving forward with Alex Smith in 2017. Don’t bank on them pursuing Romo. 

Trading Romo would be preferable for Jerry Jones, who would love to send his former favorite quarterback to the AFC and as far away from the NFC East as possible. Romo impeding a Cowboys trip to the Super Bowl during the playoffs would be rich irony, but a trade to an AFC team would prevent that from happening.