Should Chiefs pursue Tony Romo?

The Kansas City Chiefs desperately need an upgrade at quarterback to get them into the Super Bowl. Should they kick the tires on Tony Romo?

Kansas City lost in the AFC Divisional round against the Pittsburgh Steelers for a multitude of reasons. The Chiefs couldn’t stop the run, dropped too many passes and took too many penalties. They also lost because Alex Smith threw the ball 34 times and rang up 174 yards against one of the worst secondaries in football. He also missed wide open shots down the field.

In that vein, Kansas City general manager John Dorsey has to be thinking about the easiest way to fix this offensive problem. Smith has a contract that the Chiefs could get out of this offseason, saving $9.7 million while taking just over $7 million in dead money. If Smith is released next season, the Chiefs would save a whopping $17 million and have just $3 million against the cap.

Because of those numbers, it seems Smith will be back as the starter in 2017. If Kansas City takes a rookie quarterback in the top of the NFL Draft this April, Smith is still likely back, albeit competing for his job in training camp.

The only realistic way Kansas City moves on from Smith is by bringing in a veteran. While Kirk Cousins and Tyrod Taylor may be available, let’s focus on Tony Romo. The Cowboys have Dak Prescott and want to trade their 36-year-old quarterback by all accounts. He would likely cost a mid-round pick, perhaps conditional on how far his new team gets in the postseason.

If you are Dorsey, do you trade for Romo and his $14 million salary? Once he gets moved, the team acquiring him has no responsibility to pay guaranteed money. If the Chiefs wanted to cut him at any time over the next three years, he would be gone without a cent going as dead money.

Romo does turn 37 in March and has been hurt much of the last two seasons, but he represents a clear upgrade when healthy. If Kansas City kept him upright for one year, it would be a legitimate favorite to win it all for the first time since 1969.

We will dive much further into this in the coming days and weeks, but this is a good jumping off point. Discuss in the comments below!