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Moore: Why Cowboys believe short week won't have same impact on Romo's Thanksgiving Day game as last year

IRVING -- Many fans have constructed an alternate universe where the more troublesome details of the past two months, like that seven-game losing streak, don't exist.

Why worry? Tony Romo is back with all of the Jedi moments that give ardent fans faith. Count the number of memes that depict Romo with a lightsaber, looking like a 35-year-old Obi-Wan Kenobi.

That would be Ewan McGregor, not Alec Guinness, for those who have come late to the Star Wars party.

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But those who insist the Cowboys' 3-7 record will be swept aside in the insurrection Romo is about to lead, those convinced the force won't be with undefeated Carolina on Thursday afternoon, remember what took place at AT&T Stadium one year ago on Thanksgiving.

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Romo, with only three days of rest, easily had his worst game of the season.

"Well, he's a lot further away from the injury, the back injury, so we do think he's going to be more able to handle the consecutive days in the short week,'' head coach Jason Garrett said.

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Romo adhered to a routine last season that had him skip Wednesday's practice and throw on Thursday and Friday. The purpose was twofold: allow him to work on and strengthen his core every Wednesday after coming off two back surgeries and to avoid throwing on three consecutive days. He's followed the same practice routine this season when healthy.

It's impossible to follow that routine in a condensed week. Romo wound up throwing on three consecutive days heading into last year's Thanksgiving game against Philadelphia.

The result: Romo completed 18 of 29 passes for 199 yards with no touchdowns and two interceptions in the 33-10 loss. He was sacked four times and his quarterback rating was a season low 53.7.

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Full disclosure: it wasn't just his worst quarterback rating of the season. You have to go all the way back to Week 2 of the 2009 season to find one that's lower in a game he started and finished.

"I think last year was an experiment in a lot of ways at different times,'' Romo said. "We had to figure that out.

"We hadn't had a short week throughout the rest of the year. In some ways, just some of the decisions I made were not conducive to me being ready in that short period of time.

"It happened. You learn. You move on. I think I'll be better this year because of it.''

Romo will throw on three consecutive days again this week. So why should the outcome be different?

As Garrett pointed out, the quarterback is farther removed from the back injury the club wants to manage. Before he returned against Miami on Sunday, Romo had been out the previous eight weeks. The torque, the irritation and strain placed on the back by constantly throwing a football, was much less than it was at this stage one year ago.

This issue now is playing two games in five days after missing eight weeks with a distal clavicle fracture.

"Being the first week back, you've obviously got to get your body back feeling good in a short turnaround,'' Romo said. "That's at least half the battle. And then the mental side of it, trying to catch up with the plays and understanding what they're doing and how to attack them and where they're vulnerable, my thought process in those moments and all that."

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Romo has known for quite some time he'd be playing two games in five days upon his return. He kept notes on both Miami and Carolina hoping to get a head start in preparation.

The Cowboys and their fans won't have to wait for the last turkey leg to be devoured to know if Romo has a better Thanksgiving this time around.

"I know it's a short week and a lot of football here quickly for him after the long layoff with the injury,'' tight end Jason Witten said. "But he knows what he needs to do. He is the best at that.

"He has played in these games before. He knows what it takes mentally and physically. We all have a lot confidence he'll be ready to go."

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Catch David Moore and co-host Robert Wilonsky on The Ticket (KTCK-AM 1310 and 96.7 FM) on Intentional Grounding at 7 p.m. on Wednesday through the Super Bowl.

Twitter: @DavidMooreDMN