The Dallas Cowboys gave up a defensive starter to acquire Kitna in a trade Saturday with the Detroit Lions, but he said that doesn't mean he was brought in to challenge Romo for the starter's job.

"They're not looking for me to push Tony or anything like that," Kitna said in a conference call. "The ultimate thing for me would be to never have to play a down - Tony plays great and all that stuff."

Kitna has passed for 27,293 yards and 152 touchdowns in 12 NFL seasons, several as a starter. But he also has plenty of experience as a backup quarterback, including a stint in Cincinnati, where he helped tutor Carson Palmer.

"The attitude of the backup has to be, 'I'm ready to play, and I'm ready to step in if I have to play,'" Kitna said. "But for me to play, that means something bad has to happen, either things aren't going well or Tony gets hurt or whatever. I don't want people backing me up to think that way - 'Oh, I can't wait for my shot' - and I certainly don't want to be that way.

"I'm going to do everything I can to help (Romo), whatever he needs me to do. You know, I'm a competitive person, but they didn't bring me here to push him."

But that doesn't mean Kitna wouldn't love to operate an offense with as many weapons as the Cowboys' unit.

"There's a difference maker, a playmaker at every position, and that's a rare thing to find," he said.

Kitna, who turns 37 in September, said it's easier to ride the bench when the starter is as good as Romo.

"I don't have a problem backing up quality Football players," Kitna said.

That was certainly the case in 2004, when Kitna willingly went to the sidelines even though he completed 62.3 percent of his passes the previous season for 3,591 yards, a career-best 26 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.

"When they told me after 2003 - probably one of my better seasons, and we were on the cusp of the playoffs (in Cincinnati) and almost went to the Pro Bowl and all that stuff - that Carson was going to be the starter, you just accept that and go with that role," he said. "In this league, there are only 32 starting quarterbacks, and for me, coming here and backing up Tony, I think it's a really good situation."

To snag Kitna on Saturday, the Cowboys had to give up cornerback Anthony Henry. Kitna, who played in only four games last season because of a back injury, replaces weak-armed Brad Johnson, who was released last week.