You would think owner and general manager Jerry Jones had learned his lesson when the Dallas Cowboys went through nearly 5½ seasons of vagabond and journeyman quarterbacks in his quest to find Troy Aikman's replacement.

You know the names: Quincy Carter, Anthony Wright, Ryan Leaf, Clint Stoerner, Chad Hutchinson, Drew Henson, Vinny Testaverde and Drew Bledsoe.

When you consider Jerry lucked into Tony Romo -- no GM ever expects an undrafted free agent to be a long-term solution at quarterback -- you would think he would put more of a priority on the position.

Especially when he looks at 26-year-old Colin Kaepernick and 25-year-old Russell Wilson, the two quarterbacks who started Sunday's NFC Championship Game.

Jones must count on his starting quarterback to correct the cracks in the Cowboys' foundation. Matthew Emmons/USA TODAY Sports

He hasn't put the QB question on the front burner. And he won't.

And there's this: The Cowboys' dirty little secret, so to speak, is that they're not even equipped to put Romo's eventual replacement on the roster right now.

So as hard as this is going to be for some of you to hear, forget about Texas A&M's Johnny Manziel, Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater and Central Florida's Blake Bortles somehow winding up on the Cowboys' roster.

It ain't happening.

First, Jerry has drafted just three quarterbacks since he bought the team in 1989 -- and none in the first round since Aikman. He's not suddenly going to make the position a priority in the draft.

Second, Romo's six-year, $108 million contract with $55 million in guaranteed cash doesn't kick in until next season. You better believe Jerry wants to get his money's worth from Romo, regardless of Romo's two back surgeries in less than a year.

Last, the Cowboys have so many holes at various positions that they can't afford to use the premium pick it would require to get a legitimate player capable of eventually replacing Romo.

Can you imagine the outrage if the Cowboys passed on a defensive lineman, offensive lineman, cornerback, safety or linebacker to draft a quarterback who's going to hold a clipboard for a couple of years?

Just so you know, 30 of the 32 quarterbacks who led their teams in passing this season were drafted in the first three rounds. The other two? Romo and New England's Tom Brady, a sixth-round pick.

Twenty starters were selected in the first round. It's far-fetched to think the Cowboys can expect to find a starter in the fourth or fifth round capable of leading this franchise to a Super Bowl.

Sure, Jerry could get lucky again and find another Romo. But no one wants to pin their franchise's future on luck.