Tony Romo throws for 500 yards, joins elite company

Yes, this headline is about Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys' loss to the Denver Broncos.  Yes, this is a Miami Dolphins blog.  Yes, there is a reason a Miami Dolphins blog is writing a story about Tony Romo and the Dallas Cowboys. What's that reason?

Dan Marino.

You see, Tony Romo threw for over 500 yards today.  He threw for 506 yards, to be exact, giving him the 12th best single game passing yardage of all time.  Only 14 other quarterbacks have thrown for 500 yards in a game - and no one has done it twice.  Here is that list, including Romo.

1. Norm Van Brocklin - 554 yards, September 28, 1951
2. Matt Schaub - 527 yards, November 18, 2012
3. Warren Moon - 527 yards, December 16, 1990
4. Boomer Esiason - 522 yards, November 10, 1996
5. Dan Marino - 521 yards, October 23, 1988
6. Matthew Stafford - 520 yards, January 1, 2012
7. Tom Brady - 517 yards, September 12, 2011
8. Phil Simms - 513 yards, October 13, 1985
9. Eli Manning - 510 yards, September 16, 2012
10. Drew Brees - 510 yards,  November 19, 2006
11. Vince Ferragamo - 509 yards, November 26, 1982
12. Tony Romo - 506 yards, October 6, 2013
13. Y.A. Tittle - 505 yards, December 26, 1982
14. Elvis Grbac - 504 yards, November 5, 2000
15. Ben Roethlisberger - 503 yards, December 20, 2009

Unfortunately for Romo, everyone will focus on the one interception he threw, not the five touchdown passes or 140.0 passer rating.  That one interception gave the ball back to Peyton Manning, who threw for 414 yards, four touchdowns, and a 129.6 passer rating himself.  Manning then killed the clock and let Matt Prater kick a 28 yard field goal with no time remaining, giving the Broncos the 51-48 win.

Now, the real reason this article exists, a look at Dan Marino's 521 yard passing performance.  Like Romo, Marino actually lost that game, dropping 44-30 to the New York Jets in Week 8 of the 1988 season.  Marino threw for 521 yards during the game, while the Jets' Ken 'Brien only threw for 174 yards.  Marino was 35-for-60 on the day, but it was the five interceptions that did in Marino.

Marino's 521 passing yards were spread over eight different receivers.  Mark Clayton led the way with 10 receptions for 153 yards and two touchdowns, followed by the other half of the Marks Brothers, Mark Duper, who had six receptions for 132 yards.  Jim Jensen crashed his way to six receptions of his own for 96 yards and a touchdown.  Troy Stradford and Ron Davenport each came up with four receptions, with Straford tallying 40 yards and Davenport 31 yards.  Fred Banks and Lorenzo Hampton each caught two passes, for 50-yards and 6-yards, respectively.  And, finally, Ferrell Edmunds caught one pass for 13 yards.

So, congratulations to Romo for joining elite company, even if he is not enjoying a victory with it.  And, even though it was in a loss, and a loss to the Jets, it's nice to get a chance to look back at the Dolphins offense featuring Marino, Clayton, Duper, Jensen, and everyone.

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