Texas NFL Capsules: Romo: ‘We're going to have a good offense, period'

OXNARD, Calif. — Tony Romo is over his flu bug, but his right tackle just had knee surgery.

He’s getting better throwing to Roy Williams, but he’s still waiting to get his timing down with injured rookie Dez Bryant.

He’s moved the ball every drive he’s had this preseason, but he hasn’t produced a touchdown and neither has anyone else on the Dallas Cowboys.

For everything that’s gone right so far during training camp, something’s gone wrong.

Romo believes the Cowboys are just working out the kinks. He’s so sure of it, he said Tuesday: "I think we’re going to have a pretty good red-zone offense this year. I think we’re going to have a good offense, period. It’s going to be fun."

He should be optimistic. He helped shape the plan.

During the offseason, Romo and offensive coordinator Jason Garrett reviewed what worked and what didn’t last season, then discussed why. That led to some tweaks of the playbook to make sure they’re emphasizing their strengths.

"I think that’s a big part of it, learning what we both like, what we think can be more successful, what we can change, what we need to do better, what I need to be better at," Romo said. "That’s how you become a better player and a better offense. I think we’re doing that."

It helps that they’re familiar with what everyone can do. Dallas has only one new starter on offense, left tackle Doug Free, and he started seven games at right tackle last season. Although right tackle Marc Colombo had an arthroscopic procedure Monday, he’s expected back for the opener.

"You get better command of the offense every year that goes by," said Romo, who is going into his fourth full season as a starter and his fourth working with Garrett. "Me and Jason, you grow together in the system. That’s a good thing. I’m lucky to have somebody there for an extended period of time like that."

The Cowboys gained a club-record 6,390 yards last season on their way to going 11-5 and winning the NFC East. However, they scored one point fewer than the previous season, when they were 9-7 and missed the playoffs.

Dallas just had too many problems scoring inside the 20-yard line.

"When you look at it, everything we did last year, there’s a lot of correctable things out there," Romo said. "It’s not that we need to go out and find someone who is a better football player. Sometimes that’s part of it, but we don’t have that problem."

Fans are grumbling because the same problem has crept up this preseason. Dallas already has tried seven field goals in two games.

Romo counters by noting they haven’t had any three-and-outs.

"So we’re doing some good things," he said. "But scoring touchdowns obviously helps a lot and matters. From a confidence standpoint, there’s no question we need to get in the end zone. And we will."

Garrett was so upset with the offense Sunday that he made them go through an extra round of practice after their second session. They’ve been crisp in the two workouts since, including while in pads Tuesday.

Part of the problem Sunday might’ve been Romo playing through his illness.

"You need these days," he said. "So you come out here and fight through it a little bit and you’ll be fine."

Williams has been here 1½ seasons without developing a strong on-field relationship. It’s a touchy subject because of how much money Williams makes and how much the Cowboys gave up to get him.

If Williams doesn’t have big numbers, he probably won’t be back next season. The clock could be ticking already because of the high hopes for Bryant, who is eager to return from a high ankle sprain but is being stalled by management concerned about the risk of a setback. Talk of him playing two preseason games has tilted toward the caution of keeping him out til the opener.

Whenever he’s back, Romo will be ready to continue breaking him in.

"He’s got good instincts," Romo said. "He’s got a natural way about running the routes and being in position. He’s still got some stuff to learn that we’ve got to get through, but he’s coming along. ... He had a lot of time, he had a lot of work in, and he corrected a lot of mistakes pretty quickly there. But there are still things we’re going to continue to work on."

Romo came off the practice field having already heard the news of Brett Favre’s likely return to the Vikings. He jokingly said he was taking back all the nice things he said a few weeks ago when Favre was thought not to be returning.

"He’s terrible. I can’t believe he’s still playing. He’s got no ability left," Romo said, laughing. "No, he’s a great player. It’s going to be fun to play those guys this year."

QB Dan Orlovsky embracing fresh start with Texans

HOUSTON (AP) — Dan Orlovsky zipped a perfect pass to David Anderson in the corner of the end zone at the Houston Texans’ practice on Tuesday morning.

A few minutes later, coach Gary Kubiak snapped at his backup quarterback for not spotting a tight end cutting open across the middle.

The 26-year-old Orlovsky has appeared in only 12 games in five often frustrating NFL seasons. He’s found a comfortable niche with the Texans and thinks he finally has his career moving down the right path.

Orlovsky took most of the snaps in Houston’s preseason opener in Arizona on Saturday, completing 12 of 21 passes for 129 yards without an interception. He’s likely to get more extended playing time when the Texans play in New Orleans on Saturday, and feels pressure to impress his coaches and teammates before the regular season begins.

"The preseason is so huge for me," Orlovsky said. "I know, and we all know, that the guys who are playing a lot in the preseason are basically auditioning. Once Week 1 rolls around, it’s about our team getting wins, it’s not about me getting reps. So that’s why I’m trying to focus on the games and just trying to do my job."

Detroit drafted Orlovsky out of Connecticut in the fifth round in 2005. He played in two games as a rookie, then sat out the next two seasons as the third quarterback on the depth chart.

He started seven games in 2008, when the Lions became the first team in NFL history to go 0-16. Orlovsky finished that season with a 72.6 rating, fourth-lowest in the league, and struggled to keep his confidence.

"You’re human, so of course there are periods of frustration," Orlovsky said. "Doubt creeps in your mind, thoughts that you never thought would’ve been part of your process are there. You just have to continue to believe in yourself and work."

Orlovsky felt renewed when he signed with the Texans as a free agent in 2009. He was the third quarterback behind Matt Schaub and Rex Grossman and was inactive for all 16 games.

But Orlovsky admitted that he needed to sit out, learn the offense and refine his skills.

"Last year, I had to get broken down," Orlovsky said. "I had developed bad habits, mentally and physically. It wasn’t fun last year, but it’s one of those things that, when I look back on it, I’m happy I went through it."

Schaub led the league with 4,770 passing yards in 2009 and Houston finished with the NFL’s No. 1 passing offense (291 yards per game). Orlovsky said he learned "countless things" from watching Schaub run the system.

"It was a whole scope of things," Orlovsky said. "Really, it was just seeing how to run this position the way it’s supposed to be run at this level. It’s been beneficial."

Kubiak said last week that Orlovsky is much improved from last season, but needs to cut down on bad decisions. He called Orlovsky’s performance against Arizona "steady" and was happy Orlovsky didn’t commit a turnover.

Orlovsky said he botched some simple throws against the Cardinals, an area to improve against New Orleans.

"I just missed some easy plays," he said. "I missed some plays that I can make in my sleep, 99 or 100 times out of 100. I need to make the routine play consistently, and really continuing to protect the ball, that’s the really big focus of mine. I’m just focusing on executing on every single play."

Orlovsky said that his overriding goal in the preseason may be simply earning the confidence of his teammates.

"I’ve gained such an appreciation for the guys on this team, that I want to go out and perform, so they know that if something happens to Matt, that we won’t miss a blink," he said.

Star receiver Andre Johnson said Orlovsky is winning over the Texans and seems much more at ease at training camp this year.

"You could tell that he was thinking a lot when he first got here," Johnson said. "Now, you can tell he’s feeling comfortable with the offense. It showed when he went out and played this last Saturday. Hopefully, this week, it’s another test for him and he can go out and keep improving."

-- Chris Duncan