Tony Romo ahead of schedule in rehab

The biggest worry for the Cowboys on the injury front is quarterback Tony Romo.

He underwent back surgery last December and all indications are he's ahead of schedule.

"He is ahead of expectations," Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones said. "He is ahead of where we expected him to be."

Jones said Romo hasn't started throwing passes yet, but he can make throwing motions. The Cowboys begin their offseason program on April 21, and Romo is expected to participate in some capacity.

Jones showed his faith in Romo when he told reporters he doesn't believe his team is rebuilding because he had Romo. The starting quarterback, who missed the last game of the season because of an injured back, underwent two back procedures in the last year.

Romo had a cyst removed from his back last spring and then had a discectomy (surgery to remove a herniated disc) last December. Romo returned home on the same day of that surgery and visited Valley Ranch two days later for exit interviews.

After another 8-8 finish, the Cowboys seemed to be in a rebuilding mode with a quarterback in his mid-30s and coming off back surgery.

"You don’t rebuild with Romo,” Jones said. “The firepower we have on offense and where we are with our running backs, and our receivers -- you don’t rebuild with an offense that’s got the capability we’ve got. We didn’t bring [Scott] Linehan in here to rebuild.”