Jean-Jacques Taylor

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It continues to puzzle me why so many folks think having a legitimate No. 1 receiver is a luxury – not a necessity.

Maybe it's because T.O. is such a polarizing figure, and you're glad he's gone whether the Cowboys have a capable replacement or not. Having a No. 1 receiver doesn't guarantee the Cowboys a Super Bowl, but it's a lot harder to win a championship without one than it is with one.

Think about it, Michael Irvin played on each of the Cowboys' three Super Bowl teams in the '90s. In 1977, Drew Pearson, a member of the All-Decade team of the '70s, was the Cowboys' No. 1 receiver.

Do you still think having a No. 1 doesn't matter? History proves it does.

There are six key positions in football: quarterback, running back, receiver, left tackle, cornerback and defensive end.

If you don't have stars at most of those spots, it's hard to win a championship. Here's some perspective: The 1995 Cowboys had Hall of Fame or future Hall of Fame players at quarterback (Troy Aikman), running back (Emmitt Smith), receiver (Michael Irvin) and cornerback (Deion Sanders), a Hall of Fame semifinalist in defensive end Charles Haley and a Pro Bowl left tackle in Mark Tuinei.

Those positions are so important because the majority of their work occurs on the perimeter. In the NFL, that's where the points are scored.

The most dangerous offensive players are those who create big plays on the perimeter. The best defensive players – pass rushers and cornerbacks – also play on the perimeter because their job is to stop big plays on the perimeter.

See, this isn't rocket science.

The Cowboys can control the clock, dictate the tempo and finish off games by effectively running the ball, but you score points in today's NFL with the passing game.

Big plays in the passing game lead to touchdowns, in part, because it's so hard to consistently use 10 or 12 plays to drive the ball the length of the field for a touchdown.

Roy Williams needs to be a difference-maker, a guy who makes plays on the perimeter, so the defense can't use eight men in the box to stuff the running game.

Now, you can fool yourself into thinking Roy Williams can be just a guy if you want, but that's not going to get it done.

Q: Even though the Eagles made it to the NFC Championship Game, they still won only nine games and couldn't beat the awful Bengals. I really see the Eagles winning nine games again this season, especially without Brian Dawkins, which is about on par to what the Cowboys will do, though I say they go 10-6. What do you think of this?

Mike Wheeler

TAYLOR: I think fans are entitled to believe whatever they want. Most fans – not all of them by any stretch – think every move their team makes will turn out positive. They believe everything that's supposed to go right will go right. That's why they're fans. I have no problem with that. It is what it is. Right now, the Eagles are better than the Cowboys. They've added some playmakers at receiver for Donovan McNabb, and their coach is significantly better than the Cowboys coach.

Q: A recent article in The Dallas Morning News read, "Former Cowboys Quarterback Ryan Leaf." Why does it have to be former Cowboys quarterback, why not former Chargers or former NFL quarterback? Leaf played for the Cowboys for what, one season (if you want to call that playing)?

Just because someone played for the Cowboys for a short time does not mean the team should be slandered later if this player screws up. This happened with Jimmy Smith not long ago. If a player who has played for the Cowboys most of their career gets into trouble, say Nate Newton or Sherman Williams, we'll take the hit but don't stick us with everyone.

Bill Burress, San Antonio

TAYLOR: Bill, he is a former Cowboys player. You might not like it, but that's the fact. That said, in California, he was probably described as a former Charger. In Seattle, he was probably referred to as former Washington State Cougar. The paper puts a headline on a story to make it relevant to the folks in the paper's community. Jimmy Smith is probably described as a former Jacksonville Jaguar in 99 percent of all stories, though in Dallas he still might get the former Cowboys' receiver treatment.

Q: Tony Romo does a lot of stupid stuff that usually works out. He's done it in high school and college, which might be why nobody drafted him. In Michael Irvin's new TV show, he told those recruits: "It's not how many good plays you make, but how many bonehead plays you make." Do you think Romo can follow his own advice?

Bruce Crone

TAYLOR: We're about to find out. That said, I think Romo is one of the top quarterbacks in the league, and there are few other quarterbacks you'd rather have. He has considerable talent and ability, but he has to be better in the big games for the Cowboys to win in the playoffs. Part of that is making better decisions. If he can force himself to do that – it won't be easy because it goes against his natural impulse – the Cowboys have a chance to finally win a playoff game for the first time since 1996.

Q: I find it funny when I look at how Romo has statistically outperformed many of the quarterbacks who have won Super Bowls. Take last year – the Steelers won in spite of how bad Ben Roethlisberger played. He has never had good stats, but his team steps up and makes plays. Two years ago, Patrick Crayton had a chance to make a couple of plays that could have put us in the Super Bowl but he failed – not Romo.

Frank Rhea, III, King of Prussia, Pa.

TAYLOR: First off, there's no guarantee that Crayton's catch ensures a Dallas win over New York in that divisional playoff game. And it certainly doesn't ensure they would've won the NFC Championship Game. That's a gargantuan leap. One thing you must understand about quarterbacks is the only thing that really matters is whether your team wins, and did you help them win when it mattered most?

Here's my take: No matter how bad Roethlisberger plays, his teammates believe he'll make plays at the end of the game to help them win. That's what he did against Dallas and that's what he did in the Super Bowl. The Cowboys had that same belief in Roger Staubach. They don't feel that way about Romo. Not yet. And they won't until he consistently gets it done at the end of the season and in the playoffs, when it matters most.

Q: Is there any obvious proof that Romo's personal life has influenced his not-so-focused play – or kept him from doing the things needed to really excel? I'm really wondering about his girlfriend. She's a good person but what about other things like her lifestyle, popularity, demands, etc., that could gently impact or influence Tony?

Chris Dean

TAYLOR: To answer your first question, no. As for the second question, I just think it's a silly premise. Ask yourself how how much your significant other affects your performance at work? Unless you're breaking up or fighting a lot, then your significant other has no affect on your job. I don't know why it would be any different for an athlete. It's really a joke to spend this much time talking about Tony's love life.

Q: I hope all these preparation and change of approaches work out for Tony Romo. History will judge him by that.

Sam Abraham

TAYLOR: All athletes are judged, in part, by whether they win a championship or not. Romo will be no different.

Q: One thing missing in Romo's quest to be a leader is his sideline demeanor. A leader does not come off the field, sit by himself and sulk with slumped shoulders and head down. A leader stalks the sideline, with helmet on, encouraging teammates, and when not doing so, stays focused on what is happening on the field.

When the offense gets the ball back, he jogs back onto the field and takes charge of the huddle. When a teammate makes a good play, he congratulates him and when he messes up, he gets an earful from the quarterback, the team leader. Watch old footage of Bart Starr, Roger Staubach, Terry Bradshaw, Troy Aikman, John Elway or Joe Montana. When they were on the field, everyone knew who was in charge of the game.

Earle L. Jones, Jr., Dallas

TAYLOR: I'd say some of what you say is true, but there is no one way to lead. Different people do it different ways. Romo needs to work on some things, but it's not like he's a hopeless leader. Now that he's admitted there are some aspects of leadership he needs to improve, then I think he'll do it. If not, then he's going to have problems this season.

Q: I promised myself I would never send another question, but here goes. Why does Jerry Jones say he and the team are content with the wide receiver position when you have so many receivers injured?

John Hazel

TAYLOR: It takes quite a bit of nerve to send me an e-mail when you curse at me in one and call me an inflammatory name in the other. My wife suggested I be the bigger person and answer your question anyway, so here goes: It's the middle of the summer.

As long as the Cowboys receivers are healthy when training camp begins, it doesn't really matter. If it were the regular season, Sam Hurd and Miles Austin would've been on the field playing. But it's the off-season, so there's no need to push them.

Q: You don't need studs at receiver to win games. Look at New Orleans a couple of years ago. Marquis Colston was their best receiver, and Terrence Copper, a Cowboys' reject, put up numbers, too. Look at what Donovan McNabb has done without T.O. Why did they have such success without any great receivers?

Stan Grandberry

TAYLOR: You can believe what you want, but it's hard to win a championship without a No. 1 receiver. It doesn't mean it can't be done, but it's a lot easier to win with one than without one. A No. 1 receiver brings a threat and an attitude to an offense that helps make it more productive. New Orleans and Philadelphia have yet to win a championship.

Q: If I was calling the shots, I would alternate Marion Barber and Tashard Choice by giving them each a number of games to be the featured back, not necessarily alternating every game. As for Felix Jones, I would try to utilize him the same way each game as a Marshall Faulk-type offensive threat.

Michael Stevens

TAYLOR: I appreciate your passion, but that just wouldn't work. How do you think either one of them would find a rhythm with that approach. And how do think each player would react? Unhappy players, in general, don't play nearly as well as happy players.

Q: The Cowboys are going to be dependent on the two tight-end set and the three-headed rushing attack this season. Roy Williams just needs to make the tough six- to eight-yard catch to keep the chains moving. That's all the Cowboys will need from Roy. He doesn't need to be that difference-maker defensive coordinators lose sleep over.

Carl LeMaster

TAYLOR: You don't pay a guy an average of $9 million a year to make 8-yard catches in the middle of the field. That doesn't make much sense. You need a downfield passing threat, otherwise the field gets so congested because the safeties play so close to the line of scrimmage that it's even harder to run the ball.