The Cowboys have a good ol' fashion schoolyard bully and they need to take him down. The bully's name is "Blitz".

Through yesterday's games, Blitz has come after Romo 148 times, the most in the NFL. Almost 50% of the time Romo goes to pass, Blitz comes after him. The next closest percentage? 38%.

(Had a nice spreadsheet here with Blitz stats but OCC's blitz research is much better)

NFL Matchup also talked about the blitz against Romo this past weekend.

Is it because we're pass happy and don't run enough? I don't think that's it. Through yesterday, when it comes to pass attempts the Cowboys are actually middle of the pack ranked 16th with 33 attempts per game compared to the Pats in the top slot with 40 attempts per game.

Rushing wise, we're middle of the pack again at 17th with 26 attempts per game compared to the Jets at the top with 35 attempts per game.

Overall, the balance is there so why are the Cowboys seeing Blitz almost every other time they pass? Because teams know they can get away with it and we aren't making the plays that make them pay.

So far this season, we're horrible on 3rd down. We rank 17th in the league with a conversation rate of 39%. Now for most teams, this would be a good day at the office but look at where the Cowboys have been for the past 4 seasons:

We need to make Blitz pay but we just aren't. Remember how Romo to Witten in blitz situations was money? Not much payoff this year. Remember Crayton making clutch snags from the slot with the blitz coming fast? Nothing to get excited about so far this year. Remember how Romo used his legs to get out of trouble and move the chains? Well Romo's been sacked 23 times already this year. Compare that to his career high sack total of 24 in 2007. "The player" also contributed as a threat to making opponents think twice before they brought the house the last couple of years. This year's installment isn't a threat to anything. I take that back. There's a threat that he'll actually make a play in a key situation.

In 2007, Romo threw for 4211 yards with 19 picks. He had 520 pass attempts and was only blitzed 70 times. That's a blitz percentage of only 13% compared to almost 50% this year. Defenses don't give any QB, especially a young one, that kind of respect. It's earned. The Cowboys made defenses pay for bringing heat. They learned that if they bullied us with the blitz, they'd get their teeth kicked in...not so this year.

The word is out and www.blitzthehellouttaromo.com is the favorite site with d-coordinators because for 10 games now, we've shown them that there's little or no price to pay more often than not. There's more of a chance that the drive will stop with a sack, incomplete pass, penalty or turnover than we are to move the chains or burn them deep.

Blitz the bully has given us a wedgie, bloodied our noses, given us a fat lip, talked about our mama's and taken our lunch money. It's time to stand up to the bully. It's time to make him pay. It's time to "Go Ralphie". Until we do, Romo may as well be walking around with a "Kick Me" sign taped to his back.