Tony Romo has a $3.9 million contract, and some fans think he should be the Cowboys' starting quarterback.

PICHI CHUANG/DMN

Tony Romo, who went to Eastern Illinois, is in his fourth NFL season in Dallas.

But he has the ego of a regular guy from small-town Wisconsin.

A few days before the Eagles game, Romo was hanging out at Austin Ranch, waiting to start recording the ESPN radio show he co-hosts every other week. He munched on free pizza and chatted with every fan who walked up. He also allowed a blonde woman (in a tank top and a bikini) to take a picture of him on her camera phone.

"My friend has the biggest crush on you!"

After she was done, Romo stuck out his hand.

"I'm Tony," he said, offering her a wide smile, accented by dimples.

Romo, 26, also was polite enough to talk to us about his career in Dallas so far.

Q: How do you find peace with the fact that you're sitting on the sidelines so much?

A: I had to go through it in college, I had to go through it in high school, and now I'm going through it in the NFL. You have to have patience.

Q: When do you think your time's going to come?

A: [Grins.] I'm not sure. I know that I've gotten better each year that I've been here. It's a situation now where you just wait for the opportunity. When the opportunity comes ... you run for it and you never look back.

Q: You grew up in Burlington, Wis. Name your top two favorite cheeses.

A: [Laughs.] Oh, gosh. I gotta be honest. ... Cheese isn't quite as big to the people who live up there.

Q: Tell me about your relationship with Drew Bledsoe.

A: We get along very well. I understand that I'm behind a great quarterback who will hopefully end up in the Hall of Fame. I think he also understands that we have ... two good quarterbacks. It's just a situation where we never allow it to affect our relationship.

Q: Cameron Diaz or Scarlett Johansson?

A: I'd probably go with Scarlett, just because she's a little closer to my age group.

Q: Unless there's another lady you would choose instead ...

A: I've always been a Jessica Simpson fan. I always thought she's been pretty. And I felt like she's done things the right way for a while. I don't know her personally, but as long as they're honest and innocent and do the right thing, you look up to those kinds of people in the spotlight.

Q: You know, lots of articles about you have mentioned how clean-cut and fresh-faced and Midwestern you are.

A: Boy, were they off!

Q: Is that really true?

A: No, I'm much more of a rebel. I've definitely made mistakes over the years just like everybody else. I just play football, I enjoy life, I enjoy what I do, and I'm very blessed and very grateful for everything that's happened to me. But I'm also very passionate and very competitive, and I try to get better.

Lesley Téllez