Ask the Expert: Jerry Angelo

Jerry Angelo is a former personnel director for the Bucs and former general manager of the Bears. Each week, Angelo answers your questions regarding the NFL. Send your questions to GarySheltonsports@gmail.com with "ask the expert'' in the subject line. The most interesting questions will be selected.

Friday, 4 a.m.

 Dallas’ Tony Romo walked away from the NFL, but he left the impression that he might be back. Do you think this it it for Romo, or do you think he might give it one more try?

This is it for Romo. He read the writing on the wall. No one stepped up to the plate to sign him with starter's money. That's the bottom line, like it most always is for older players. He saw more money in the broadcast booth, than he did on the field. It was a decision that was made for him and he just followed the green, as in dollars.

Life will be much more enjoyable and safer. If a starter gets hurt and out for an extended period of time, he may get a call and revisit his situation. Romo is in the driver’s seat. If I were a team, I’d hope like heck I’m not the one calling him for a ride.

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Looking back at his career, would you call Romo underrated or overrated? I saw one writer who said he was a Hall of Famer. Is that overstating it?

Absolutely overrated! What did he do? You base the legacy of quarterbacks on wins and wins in big games.

I don’t have those stats in front of me, but I would say with most certainty he is in the minus column in both categories. He had talent and a lot of stats, but to me, I never saw a guy, other than Matt Stafford, do so much and have so little to show for it. He just happened to be in Dallas, where the ‘star' always seems to shine a little brighter.

If you had to rank the Dallas quarterbacks, what order would you like them in? Roger Staubach, Troy Aikman, Don Meredith, Dak Prescott, Danny White?

Have to go with Roger the Dodger as my No. 1. He had magic. He turned nothing into something going back to his Heisman days at Navy. He had the “It” factor.

In fact, he may be the reason the term came into the football vocabulary defining quarterbacks. My next one would be Aikman. He was tough as nails & could make all the throws. No hole in his game and has the rings to show for it. After that it’s Meredith and, although it's a little premature to rank Prescott after only one year, I’d go with him.

If you’re the Houston Texans, where do you look for a quarterback. Kaepernick?Fitzpatrick? A draft choice?

I've said this already, Kaepernick has something to offer, but the arrow is no longer pointing up for him. He’s a backup who can come in and give an offense a boost. Again, we’re talking about a backup quarterback. Any time you go to your backup at that position, your chances of winning greatly diminish. So, let’s not overrate what any backup can do. Most all teams are in the same boat.

Did Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly do former quarterback Deshone Kizer any good when he said Kizer should have returned to school to mature?

It’s a bit of a cheap shot; regardless of how true it is in his mind. It’s over. He declared and both Notre Dame and Kizer are going forward in different directions. The thing to do is wish him well, say positive things about him. People with class say the right thing, regardless of how they feel personally, when it comes to talking about other people.

Ray Rice is going to be a high school coach. With his background, would you hire him?

I would hire anybody who was qualified. If the player made a mistake and I was convinced he had learned from it and were repentant, I would have no problem with him. Being a high school coach is a great position in terms of being a role model for young people. I think Rice will do a very good job. I’m pulling for him.

How do you think Rex Ryan will do as a TV analyst. I see him being funnier than he was as a coach.

He’ll do great, because he’s been rehearsing for this job most of his career. He’s an actor that finally found the right stage to perform from...
Go Rex, we’ll miss you!
Sincerely,
The Patriot and Dolphin fans

If you ran a football team, how high a draft pick would you spend on Oklahoma’s controversial Joe Mixon?

Probably 5-7, and for no other reason based on what I saw on the field. He’s a player without a defined position. He’s not a natural runner. He’s a big receiver playing running back. I don’t like his game-day toughness. Obviously, I’m not a big fan. Again this has nothing to do other than what I saw him do on the field.

The Dolphins traded up to draft Dion Jordan third in 2013. How can a team miss so badly on a player? What ingredients go into it besides his tape?

Obviously the type of passion he has for the game. You can’t like football, you have to love it. It’s to hard a game to not go into without the mindset of paying the price everyday. The grind gets them.

They just can’t keep pace. They simply don’t want it badly enough. The other factor is dealing with all that comes with fame and money. A lot of guys do a poor job of that and ultimately find themselves swallowed up in things that don’t matter, but at the expense of their career.