RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 6 sourcesCBS Sports placed Tony Romo , its lead NFL analyst, on leave on Friday, July 31.
The network really had no other choice.
Former Arizona Cardinal J.J. Watt will work with play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz during preseason broadcasts. And who knows, maybe for a long time after.
Romo, the former Dallas Cowboy quarterback, was arrested in Milwaukee on July 23 on suspicion of driving while impaired. He told officers he was on his way to see his grandparents and hadn’t had any alcoholic beverages. Bodycam footage released by the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office did Romo no favors. Nor did the discovery of an open alcoholic beverage container.
There's more to the Tony Romo story than just his arrest
Now wait just a second, you might be thinking. Innocent until proven guilty and all that. Which is true. Romo will have his day in court — a hearing is scheduled for Sept. 21, in fact. If his case goes to trial, he may well be found not guilty.
That’s not all that’s in play here. Romo serves at the pleasure of CBS Sports. I don’t know if there is a clause in his contract that covers this kind of situation. And the network didn’t fire him. But it’s obviously a terrible look for Romo and CBS Sports, so placing him on leave sounds like the right move until the legal aspects are sorted out.
There is more to the story here. Romo has been on something of a downward slide for a while now — not, as far as anyone knows, personally, but professionally. It hasn’t been a fall from grace (though depending on how this turns out, it may qualify). But there’s no question among NFL fans that Romo hasn’t been the sharp, insightful analyst he was before.
Romo retired from the Cowboys in 2016, and signed with CBS Sports the following year. It was a bit of a surprise; Romo seemed like he had several years of playing ahead of him, had he wanted to continue. He was a divisive figure. Cowboys fans didn’t like him because they thought he choked in big games. Every other team’s fans hated him because he played for the Cowboys. (That’s how NFL fandom works. As a Washington and Arizona fan, I approve.)
Is an analyst worth $18 million a year? Absolutely
He was assigned to the No. 1 NFL broadcast team, working alongside Nantz. And Romo turned out to be surprisingly good at the analyst gig, bringing insight, as well as a willingness to criticize players and teams, that a lot of former players don’t. He showed an uncanny knack for knowing what plays a team was going to run, real magic-trick stuff. And in 2020 CBS Sports signed him to a contract that pays him $18 million a year.
People lost their minds. I didn’t; I actually defended Romo and the contract. NFL games are by far the most popular thing on TV. By far . And in 2020, Romo was the hottest analyst out there. Of course, I later argued that Tom Brady was not worth the $350 million Fox Sports is paying him to analyze games. Apples and oranges, I think, or maybe a lack of consistency. But the money is an order of magnitude greater in Brady's case. (And in fairness, I was the worst football announcer of all time.)
Other announcers have signed huge contracts in the meantime. Troy Aikman, the No. 1 analyst for Fox Sports, makes about the same per season as Romo. Which is also fine. Again, NFL games are uniquely popular, and they serve as an unmatched promotional platform for networks. People watch, and people listen.
Boy, do they listen. It's not the money that people complain about in Romo's case now. The play-prediction magic wore off somewhere along the line, which is OK. It's not essential to good analysis. The bigger complaint against Romo is that he got lazy, that his analysis was boring or subpar, that he wasn't preparing the way he should be. When you're paying someone $18 million a year, you expect a little work in return.
J.J. Watt will replace Romo, at least temporarily
During the 2022 offseason, CBS Sports staged an intervention of sorts , according to reports, to try to force Romo to prepare more. The network said it wasn't an intervention, that it meets regularly with on-air talent. Which doesn't exactly sound like a denial.
Whatever the case, the arrest couldn't have come at a worse time for Romo. Or, for that matter, a better time for Watt, who is the current flavor of the month among NFL analysts. (And not without reason; he's really good.)
It wouldn't be a big surprise if CBS promoted Watt full-time to the No. 1 broadcast team. I doubt they would fire Romo, but a demotion to another team is certainly a possibility. Though you don't pay someone $18 million a year to be second-best.
I hope it works out for Romo. It's a sad story, really. But the NFL is a brutal game, the business of broadcasting even more so.
Failing upward: I was a terrible football announcer. It was a blast
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: CBS had to put Tony Romo on leave. Not just over his arrest | Opinion
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