Cowboys release QB Brandon Weeden, prepare for return of Tony Romo

IRVING -- The Dallas Cowboys moved on from backup quarterback Brandon Weeden on Tuesday, waiving the former first-round pick who was in the last year of his contract.

The Cowboys expect Tony Romo to start Sunday and now have another open roster spot to work with as they activate their starter from the injured reserve/designated to return list.

Weeden was 0-4 as a starter in place of Romo the last two seasons. He led the Cowboys to a Week 2 win at Philadelphia after Romo fractured his left collarbone in the third quarter.

Weeden followed with three consecutive losses as the starter for the Cowboys and was replaced during the club's bye week by veteran Matt Cassel.

The writing was on the wall for Weeden's future with the Cowboys once the club replaced him with Cassel because his contract was up after the season.

Weeden said he was "pissed" after he was replaced by Cassel. But Cowboys offensive coordinator Scott Linehan said last week that Weeden handled the demotion well the last few weeks with Cassel in charge.

"Brandon's been great," Linehan said. "He's a true professional. It's never easy when you're in that situation. But he's been a true professional. He's been very engaged. He does a great job of helping in the meetings, sometimes he sees things that come up or pop up, he's always there giving Matt all of the information that he can possibly do to help us to win. Brandon cares, and he knows it's not easy for him individually, but he cares about this team and getting us on the winning side."

Weeden, 32, signed a two-year contract with the Cowboys in March 2014 after he was released by Cleveland. He made $570,000 in 2014 and was to be paid $660,000 this season. When he signed with the Cowboys, Cleveland still owed Weeden $2.1 million in guaranteed money.

The Cowboys will have Romo and Cassel active for Sunday's game at Miami. Cassel will be a free agent after the season, and the Cowboys will have to decide on whether he's worth bringing back after he went 0-4 as a starter while Romo was out.