You’re Not Alone: CBS is getting tired of Tony Romo already too

After six years in the booth, Dallas Cowboys quarterback-turned-analyst Tony Romo has been under fire for his unimpressive color commentary in recent games. 

Tony Romo’s NFL analyst approval trajectory coincidentally follows the same path as his quarterback stint on the Dallas Cowboys. A few spikes early in his career as he earned three Pro Bowl nods, a massive spike toward the end when he led Dallas to a 12-3 record and even snuck into the league MVP conversation, and then a sudden drop-off.

Right now, in 2023, is the sudden drop-off of Romo’s analyst career. Six years ago, Romo received a 10-year, $180 million deal from CBS Sports, at the time the largest deal in sportscasting history.

Romo had generally been well-liked by audiences in his sports analyst career, yet the original gleam and shimmer of his color commentary has slowly but surely faded this past season.

While Fox’s Greg Olsen continues to be a crowd-pleaser, Romo has stumbled a bit in the booth, drawing heavy criticism from both fans and pundits.

According to a New York Post article, CBS Sports executives tried stage something of an “intervention” for Romo last offseason to try and reignite the chemistry between him and his broadcast partner, Jim Nantz.

CBS Sports analyst Tony Romo is feeling the heat of public criticism

Romo’s latest comments to the Post reveal his current mindset in sports analysis in which he admits he’s still a work on progress:

"“You’re going to fail all the time, but at the same time, you succeed because of that, as long as you think about it and try to understand how to improve and then go about the process to make that happen, which is work ethic and commitment. But you got to have a plan for it before.”"

What, exactly, is Romo’s plan now having fallen out of public favor? Has Romo lost his charm, just as he lost his edge as an NFL player all those years ago?

Romo’s responsibilities as a color commentator are simple in principle: the football game itself should tell most of the story, and the broadcast should be engaging and thoughtful as it “colors” in the blanks.

In recent NFL games, however, Romo has too often gone way off-script and his commentary, riddled with blunders, has gone stale. CBS has clearly grown tired of trying to teach Romo how to act in the booth, but after giving the former QB a boatload of money, it’s not like he has any incentive to change his ways.

CBS will be airing the Super Bowl in 2024 and may consider splitting up the Romo-Nantz duo this offseason if things don’t improve.