SPORTSDAY

Reckon Jessica Simpson's lawyer was right. Her romance with Tony Romo appears to be as strong as ever.

Her alcohol tolerance, on the other hand, appears pretty weak. GossipGirls.com (hey, the link was e-mailed to me!) reports that Simpson got tipsy while attending a Metalskool concert with Romo at the Key Club in West Hollywood.

Romo seems to be in good spirits despite the Super Bowl being played this week without the Cowboys. TMZ.com has an absolutely classic video (that I can't link to because of good-natured profanity directed toward America's Next Quarterback) of him hopping on stage with Simpson after a whole bunch of prodding and singing his theme song, "Don't Stop Believing."

Hope you folks didn't get your hopes up by the tabloid reports that Tony Romo dumped Jessica Simpson.

Her lawyer sent a very scary letter to OK! Magazine (that TMZ.com got its hands on) saying that the story was a bunch of bull and the gossip rag better print a big, ol' correction. Except John J. Rosenberg used much fancier words.

The letter mentioned that the story subjected Miss Simpson to "public contempt, ridicule, aversion or disgrace," and if I correctly read all those multi-syllable words, she might sue. So please, folks, be nice to Romo's lady in the comments on this here blog.

I don't mean to scoop Timmy Tabloid here, but it looks like anyone who was worried about a certain blonde being a distraction to the quarterback of America's Team needn't worry anymore.

According to the always-reliable OK! magazine, it's all over. Sad day for Timmy Tabloid, I know, because of all the mileage he got out of that relationship. And I'll be looking for some reaction soon from my colleague on Cowboys Blog. Let him mourn the end first, and then I'm sure we'll hear from him.

By the way, I've got nothing against the Boston broadsheet, as Todd may have insinuated. I just had an inkling this morning on what the Herald was running, and thought it'd be an interesting link. For the record, it's worth checking out both stories (here and here), if you're interested in football beyond just the Cowboys.

Tabloid reports, which may or may not be true, indicate that Tony Romo is sick and tired of Jessica Simpson. A pal of the blonde babe told OK! (love a publication that has an exclamation point in its name!!!) that Romo recently busted out the ol' just-wanna-be-friends speech.

"Tony has finally started to realize how high-maintenance Jessica is," says her friend. "We're talking diva status. She comes with an entourage, and that includes her dad, Joe Simpson. What's not to love?"

It seems dangerous to wear a bikini in subzero weather, but a few feisty female Packer fans went with that look this evening. At least up top. Looked like they wimped out with some winter gear below the waist.

Unlike most males across the country, I noticed the sign the ladies were waving: "Favre, thanks for not going to Mexico!"

Reader RP spotted a sign earlier welcoming folks to Cabo San Lambeau.

Those Cheeseheads sure are giving Wisconsin native Tony Romo a tough time.

There are tabloid reports, which may or may not be fictional, that Carrie Underwood is entering the Tony Romo romance picture again. A "source close to Jessica" whispers that Miss Simpson banned Romo from contacting his ex.

I debated whether to post this info after a link mysteriously arrived in my e-mail inbox. I'm aware of the fact that this post will annoy a whole bunch of folks who just want to talk football.

However, I'm all about providing hope for Cowboy fans. And I think we can all agree that Carrie deserves a lot of credit for nursing Romo after the Seattle Slip. After all, her comforting touch helped prepare Romo for the best statistical QB season in America's Team history.

If Romo hooks up with Carrie again, we've got a surefire Hall of Famer on our hands, especially with Jason Garrett sticking around Valley Ranch.

So says The Onion, which never lets the facts get in the way of a funny story.

"Ever since I was a little girl growing up in football-obsessed Texas, it's been a dream of mine to completely bring the evil, arrogant Cowboys organization and its boorish and cocky fans to their knees. But the suave and sophisticated players on that team are nigh-unapproachable for a nice country girl like me," Simpson declared from her Throne of Thorns, situated in the surveillance room of her headquarters. "And then I saw Tony. Instantly I knew that he was the weak link, the keystone, the only one for me to exploit."

Warning: Sense of humor is strongly recommended if you're going to click on the above link. Folks who don't find this stuff funny have two options: Ignore it or rant and rave in the comments, so others can laugh at you.

John Mayer says Dallas should lighten up on his ex, Jessica Simpson.

Thanks, John.

This will be my last Jessica-related post.

The New York Post is taking credit for the Giants' victory. The newspaper planted a fake Jessica Simpson in Texas Stadium, claiming the ploy threw off the Cowboys.

Well, if The Post's intention was to make Patrick Crayton drop passes, have the Cowboys commit stupid penalties and give the offensive line the inability to protect Tony Romo, then it was a brilliant move.

Just got done watching the whole Terrell Owens interview with Deion Sanders and say this about The Original 81: He's nothing if not entertaining.

Deion pressed him about the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta. And even if his response wasn't all the way truthful, it was an absolute grand slam of a quote.

"I’ll let the cat out of the bag, that was my apology trip to Jessica (Simpson) and (Tony) Romo," Owens said. "So I sent them on that trip to get away for the bye week. I just tried to correct a harmless little joke I made."

Speaking further on the matter, Sanders uttered the line, "It's not easy being T.O." To which Owens responded, "It not easy being Romo."

If the Simpson line was the winner, the runner-up was Terrell Owens insistance that this season will end with the Cowboys' sixth Super Bowl title.

"Jerry brought me here to bring this team to the Super Bowl," Owens said. "He took a chance or a risk, in a lot of people’s minds, to bring me here. I’m not going to let him down."

Not exactly a guarantee, right? Well, when asked about Jason Garrett's candidacy for head coaching jobs, he sounded pretty sure.

"I can’t really put in to words what he’s done for me -- volumes, for what he’s done for my career, compared to last year," Owens said. "What he does after we win the Super Bowl, that’s on him."

Follow the jump for more of this solid gold session with Prime Time.

Wade Phillips and Jerry Jones were fine with the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta, but a couple of their fellow geezers are killing Tony Romo for chillin' in Cabo.

Terry Bradshaw, who won four Super Bowls despite his alleged spelling difficulties, blasted Romo. So did Sports Illustrated scribe Dr. Z, who also ripped Romo's recent play.

If the Cowboys don't win Sunday, I'd strongly advise Romo to leave the country for a lot longer than a weekend. It'll get ugly around these parts, justified or not.

My hunch, however, is that he'll spend next week downplaying his childhood idolization of Brett Favre again.

If you think Jerry Jones is concerned about his franchise quarterback jetting off with Jessica Simpson, think again.

"I have no concern about Tony's social life and about his relationships," Jerry said yesterday. "I've had a lot of players in 19 years that I've had concerns in those areas about, so I'm not a novice. I don't have any. There's not one concern about his relationship and about how he relaxes and what he does with his time."

Jerry, who famously warned Romo that some ladies can "smell fresh cash" after he signed his $67 million deal, was asked why he didn't get invited to the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta. Jerry replied with a gem of a one-liner.

"I was the one taking the pictures," he cracked.

That was a joke -- Papa Joe was probably behind the camera -- but Jerry sure doesn't mind the marketing effect of Romo's crossover celebrity.

Funny exchange between the New York media and Tony Romo during today's conference call:

Q: There are reports from Dallas that Jessica is not coming to the game. Is that true?

A: I like how it is a "report." That is a good way to ask the question, too. I'm slowly learning the tricks, guys. I'm slowly learning. I don't know. Everyone keep their eyes open, we will find out, I guess.

Tony Romo talked to the Valley Ranch media horde today. Believe it or not, the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta was a hot topic of conversation.

Romo certainly didn't apologize for leaving the country during the bye weekend. He did what he thought was best to prepare himself for a playoff run.

You might think Romo spent the whole weekend swigging Coronas and snuggling with Jessica Simpson, but that's not the case. I can't say for sure if Jason Witten ran any seam routes on the beach for Romo, but they did watch the full slate of NFL playoff games.

"I know what I needed to get myself in a position to hopefully be successful," Romo said. "You know, people asking for tickets, media requests, all these things doing the weekend – I was able to put the phone aside and get myself ready and watch some football for two straight days. It was really fun and exciting."

Tony Romo is 100 percent focused on football this week, and it's all work all the time for his better (?) half, too.

The possibly credible Web site showbizspy.com reports that Simpson will not make a Sunday appearance at Texas Stadium.

"She is not attending. She’s working on a new album," her publicist Cindy Berger told the site. "She will not be there, but she’ll be watching on TV and cheering Romo on."

Promise this will be the last Simpson mention of the morning.

For this here blog ... I'm Timmy Tabloid.

Bobby Carpenter pretty much got a free pass after taking part in the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta, while folks freaked out about Tony Romo and (to a much lesser degree) Jason Witten having some fun in the sun.

Carpenter didn't get any heat for two reasons: 1) His '70s-porn-style mustachioed mug didn't show up in the first wave of paparazzi photos to hit the web; 2) Most folks forgot that Carpenter still plays for the Cowboys.

While Romo was spending extra time in the film room Monday, Carpenter bolted town again, jetting off to New Orleans to watch his alma mater get whupped in the BCS national championship game (along with Akin Ayodele and LSU alums Bradie James and Marcus Spears). Cross your fingers that Carpenter didn't take the Buckeyes' butt kicking too hard, because the Big Easy sure offers a lot of options for sorrow drowning.

Just seems strange to me that folks are so worked up about an undrafted free agent's getaway when a first-round pick made that trip and followed it up by hitting America's best party city.

That's what New York Daily News columnist Gary Myers thinks. He's going crazy about the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta, although questions about Tony Romo's Mexican getaway were pretty much met with a bunch of shrugs at Valley Ranch yesterday.

Now there is also the Simpson Factor: She was sitting in a private box wearing a Cowboys jersey with a cute pink No. 9 as Romo stunk it up against the Eagles. Then Romo was in Cancun with Simpson and her family and tight end Jason Witten over the weekend. If the Cowboys lose to the Giants, then Romo will have a lot of questions to answer about his focus.

You can certainly accuse Romo of blatantly violating Bill Parcells' commandment about not being a celebrity quarterback, but it's funny that Tom Brady isn't getting any heat for spending his weekend in the Big Apple with Gisele.

Moral of the story: A quarterback can do whatever he wants after he wins a Super Bowl or three. Until then, every non-football-related move is fodder for questioning your commitment and focus.

Nobody with the Cowboys seems to be concerned about the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta.

Jason Witten, who joined Tony Romo and others on the trip, explained that the fellas just wanted to get away before the playoffs started. Romo can't go anywhere around these parts without being swarmed, so they took an hour-and-a-half plane trip and hit the beach. Hey, they were just following Wade Phillips' orders.

"I told them to stay off their feet and relax," Phillips said.

Phillips made it clear that he had no problem with players going out of town for the weekend. And questions about weekend trips were met with eye-rolls in the locker room.

"Hey, hey, we're talking about the game this week," Patrick Crayton said. "We can talk about Cancun after the Super Bowl."

Tony Romo and Jason Witten are participating in the Cowboys' walkthrough. They don't appear to have any lingering effects from the Simpson Family Bye Week Fiesta.

T.O. was the only player missing from practice. The hope is that he'll be ready to roll by Wednesday or Thursday.

Paparazzi snapped a few pictures of Tony Romo vacationing in Mexico this weekend with the Simpson family, and they're all over the blogosphere now (deadspin, The Big Lead and other sites I can't link to because of profanity, etc.).

I'm not about to make a big deal out of how Romo chooses to spend his bye weekend. Jessica is clearly concerned about making sure her man is ready to play, as evidenced by the deep tissue massage she's giving his backside in one photo. Plus, Jason Witten made the trip to keep an eye on his road roomie.

For this here blog ... this is Timmy Tabloid.

Jason Witten took part in Sports Illustrated's Pop Culture Grid. His answer to "Celeb that should take it easy in 2008" was particularly interesting: Jessica Simpson.

I'm not going to jump to conclusions here, because a lot of folks got awfully mad at me the last time I took one of the Cowboys' comments about Tony Romo's girlfriend seriously. (Stand by everything I wrote about that, by the way.) Maybe Witten was one of the handful of folks who saw Blonde Ambition and thinks Jess ought to put her acting career on hold.

Or maybe Witten was just poking fun at his road roomie. After all, his answer to "Gossip story of the year" was: Anything Tony Romo.

I didn't write Jessica Simpson's name on this here blog one single time yesterday, because I had a hunch that folks were tired of reading about her. But Jerry, a marketing genius if there ever was one, enjoys the Jessica drama.

"There's a little part of me that hopes it doesn't go away," Jerry said in the locker room last night. "It's kind of fun for that kind of bantering to go about. Not at her expense. But I think it's about how popular she is, how pretty she is and her fame.

"But it has never had and won't ever make a difference on how Tony Romo plays."

I just got back from a live TV spot on the field and this might be a record for Cowboys' fans. And for those wondering about the Jessica Simpson cut-outs, I saw three. I saw three women wearing t-shirts over their faces with a likeness of Simpson.

But the best (or worst) poster belonged to a 10-year-old kid that had pictures of Simpson, her ex-husband, Nick Lachey, and one of her former boyfriends, musician John Mayer, and Romo. Let's just say it made fun of where Romo ranked in order of Jessica's relationships.

OK, on a serious note: it's a little cold on the field and windy, too. I promise, no more Jessica notes.

Looks like 790 The Ticket might as well be hubbed not in Miami, but the Metroplex, because the Cowboys talk keeps coming from them.

Jerry Jones is a guest on The Michael Irvin Show, and he's been effusive in his praise for new Dolphins VP Bill Parcells.

"There’s nobody smarter than Jimmy Johnson and Bill Parcells, and you’ve got to respect that," Jones said. "I’ve certainly made my best decisions when I’ve been around someone who’s really smart, and I made my best decisions around those guys."

Jones said he didn't disagree strongly with Parcells more than four or five times, and that "Bill was more on board with Terrell (Owens) than people think." And he also went over how he would recommend Parcells to others. Follow the jump to see what he said.

We've got one more reason that Texas is the best state. Blonde Ambition opens in theaters around these parts today, while the rest of the country has to wait a month until it comes out on DVD.

The reviews have not been kind to the latest cinematic work by Tony Romo's main squeeze, but I found the trailer to be extremely entertaining. After unfairly taking the blame for last week's loss, I think Cowboy fans owe it to Jessica Simpson to check out this flick.

T.O. talked to the media again today, breaking his Wednesday-only routine. He wanted to make it clear that he does not blame Jessica Simpson for the loss to the Eagles and hopes there are no hard feelings.

"If I don't get the ball this week, I'm going to have to go to Hollywood and bake some cakes or something," T.O. said.

That was a joke.

On a serious note, T.O. was asked about Tony Romo's focus. Is the Cowboys' franchise QB as focused as he should be?

"You've got to ask Tony," T.O. said, not exactly giving a ringing endorsement.

That's the plan on ruinromo.com.

The NFL, which can smell fresh cash with the best of 'em, sees the relationship between Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson as a marketing opportunity. Romo and his blonde babe are fodder for the latest NFL Network "Joe's Diner" ad.

Since Jerry is an NFL Network head honcho, this could be seen as a seal of approval.

T.O.'s publicist wants the world to know that he was just joking about Jessica Simpson this morning. You can judge for yourself by listening to the conversation. And you can vote here.

T.O. had just finished saying he was looking forward to sipping mai tais and looking at bikinis when I asked for his thoughts about Simpson. Here's the transcript:

Me: "Speaking of looking at bikinis, what do you think about all the hubbub about Jessica Simspon and Tony Romo?"

T.O.: "Right now, Jessica Simpson is not a fan favorite in this locker room or in Texas Stadium." [reporters laugh]

Me: "Why not in this locker room?"

T.O.: "I think with everything that has happened, and obviously the way Tony played and the comparison between her and Carrie Underwood, I think a lot of people feel like she's probably taking his focus away. Other than that, she was at the top of my list until last week." [reporters laugh after last line; T.O. had a straight face during the first sentence]

Me: "She looks good, but you want to see her on TV and not at Texas Stadium."

T.O., playing to the crowd: "Oh, I've got a message for her when we make the playoffs. Just stay tuned." [reporters laugh as he walks off]

UPDATE: My take? He wasn't kidding when he said Simpson isn't a favorite in the locker room or when he talked about Romo's focus.

The Cowboys are off Friday, but don't expect to find T.O. checking out Blonde Ambition during its opening day in Texas theaters. He's not joking when he says that Jessica Simpson is screwing up Tony Romo's focus.

"Right now, Jessica Simpson is not a fan favorite in this locker room or in Texas Stadium," T.O. said. "I think with everything that has happened, and obviously the way Tony played and the comparison between her and Carrie Underwood, I think a lot of people feel like she's probably taking his focus away.

"Other than that, she was at the top of my list until last week."

Romo didn't make his usual Wednesday appearance in the locker room, so we didn't have a chance to get his reply to T.O.'s concern about Ms. Simpson. And T.O. isn't done dealing with her, either.

"I've got a message for her when we make the playoffs," T.O. said. "Just stay tuned."