ARLINGTON, Texas -- Tony Romo dressed quickly at his locker, pausing only briefly to tell reporters he wasn't talking after his first game as Dallas' backup quarterback in 10 years.
A few feet away, a mass of reporters surrounded NFL rushing leader Ezekiel Elliott, one of two rookies in the Dallas backfield. The other is quarterback Dak Prescott, who has the Cowboys atop the NFL after stepping in for the injured Romo.
The lingering question of Romo's status took a different turn after the Cowboys (9-1) set a regular-season franchise record with their ninth consecutive victory.
Romo, 36, was active for the first time since last Thanksgiving. And Dallas won without him again, beating Baltimore 27-17 on Sunday with Prescott overcoming a shaky start.
Now Prescott faces a quick turnaround on Thanksgiving and a rematch with Washington, where he got his first career victory in Week 2 after an opening loss to the New York Giants.
"He's got that way to really work through where he is and what he's doing," owner and general manager Jerry Jones said. "There's no doubt he is having fun. Then he recognizes opportunity. I've never heard him one time when I've talked to him, not start off by saying what a great opportunity it is just to get to be here and play."
Prescott said seeing Romo in uniform on the sideline was not disconcerting.
"He is as helpful as he has always been," Prescott said after throwing three touchdown pass in his second consecutive 300-yard game. "The only thing different is he is in uniform."
The Cowboys' nine-game winning with rookie quarterback Prescott ranks second in the Super Bowl era to the 2004 Pittsburgh Steelers, who won 13 consecutive under rookie Ben Roethlisberger and advanced to the AFC championship game.
Romo hasn't answered questions, and he isn't showing any signs that he will as long as he's not playing after issuing a five-minute statement last week that conceded the job to Prescott.
Romo's presence as a backup creates an interesting situation for Jones, who gave Romo the franchise's first $100 million contract-- a six-year, $108 million deal signed in 2013.
Romo has a $20 million salary cap figure this season that goes up to about $25 million next season. The Cowboys can save about $5 million under the cap by cutting him, but Jones said last week there was "no consideration" of Romo playing elsewhere.
"Even though he wasn't ready to play, he's been saying he would not in any way disrupt the success that we've got going in any way possible," Jones said. "On the other hand, Tony wants -- and we want him, I want him -- to be ready to go in a nanosecond when it's called for. That's what he is prepared to do."
Prescott said he has his doubts whether questions about Romo will fade now that he's been in uniform as the backup without playing,
"I'm sure y'all will figure out a way to ask me about it," he said.
Sports on 11/22/2016