The Dallas Cowboys haven't had a winning season since 2009, which marked their only playoff appearance in the last five seasons.
Despite the team's struggles, quarterback Tony Romo proved his intentions to stay with the team, leveraging his way to a six-year, $108 million contract extension Friday. He believes the Cowboys are ready to live up to the hype that comes from being labeled "America's team".
"This is an organization that always gives us a chance to win, and that is always the main focus here," Romo said in a statement released by the Cowboys on Friday. "We haven't had the type of success that we have all wanted the last few years, but I do know that we are on the verge of doing that. I have been around good teams and bad teams and our team is about to take that next step with a lot of things that are taking shape around Valley Ranch. Today just further instills that and I am excited about our team and the direction we are headed.
"This football team that we have is a good team and with all the people we have coming back and the things we are doing behind the scenes, it will make us a very difficult ball club to beat. I am excited that ownership and the organization believes in me to get this job done. Our goal is the Super Bowl, and I am determined and honored to be the guy in this position to help our team do that."
Romo has a 55-38 record as a starter, but is 17-21 the last three seasons. He has a grand total of one playoff victory. News of his contract was received with mixed emotions.
"It can be a tough place to play," Romo's agent, RJ Gonser, said. "There's a lot of bows thrown your way, and a there can be some criticisms as well. He thrives on that. He welcomes that. He embraces it."
Romo is just one of those love-him-or-hate-him kind of players. He's had elite moments and others that were, well, the opposite. Either way, expectations just went up.
"Absolutely, we feel that we can win a championship with Tony," Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones told USA Today on Friday."We wouldn't be doing all of this if we didn't think we could win with him."
Follow Kareem Copeland on Twitter @kareemcopeland.
