“Worst contract in media history.” Back in 2020, when CBS signed its 10-year, $180 million contract with Tony Romo, one media exec gave a simple verdict to The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand. CBS had just handed Romo a contract that paid him $53 million more than he had earned in his NFL career.
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The contract seemed worth it at the time. Even as an untested announcer, Romo was holding his own. Yet, after Romo’s arrest, one reporter believes CBS will look for a way out of their blockbuster deal.
Tony Romo was arrested on July 23 on suspicion of operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Since then, his future as a CBS analyst has become murky. The network remains tight-lipped about the situation, putting him on indefinite leave, but according to Awful Announcing’s Brandon Contes, more trouble is lurking for Romo.
“Al Michaels is the example that everybody goes to: he had the DUI in 2017 or whenever it was, but NBC stood by him,” Brandon Contes said on the publication’s podcast on August 29. “There was no public punishment. He wasn’t suspended, he wasn’t removed and they kind of just moved on.
Contes referred to an incident from April 2013. Veteran announced Al Michaels was pulled over after officers at a DUI checkpoint saw Michaels make an illegal U-turn. He was held for five hours, then released, later being charged with a DUI. At the time, NBC acknowledged his arrest, but he wasn’t suspended. His eventual plea resulted in him receiving community service hours.
In September 2013, the network officially announced that Michaels would be at the microphone for NBC’s Sunday Night Football kickoff for the Chicago Bears vs Pittsburgh Steelers game. He continued as the primary voice of NBC’s Sunday Night Football for many years since then.
He had been a broadcaster for decades, and in the five years before his arrest had shared the broadcast booth with the likes of John Madden and Cris Collinsworth while on his way to being the third NBC broadcaster to do a play-by-play for a Super Bowl.
And that could be a possible outcome for Romo too. When the network gambled on Romo in 2017, it paid off. His insights and predictions impressed viewers. He partnered with Jim Nantz in the booth.
But as Contes believes it, there’s one issue. “At that point, NBC was happy with Al Michaels. NBC wanted to keep Al Michaels as the lead play-by-play voice of their NFL coverage. And it just seems like CBS might be looking at this as an opportunity to get out.”
Now, it’s important to note that there’s no confirmation about a divide between CBS and Romo. Earlier this year, when fans on social media criticised Romo, the network wasn’t happy. They backed Romo. But months later, that stance may have changed.
Romo was pulled over on July 23 this year after a deputy allegedly saw him passing cars through a gore area between interstate traffic and vehicles entering from an on-ramp, the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office said. According to the police report, Romo struggled with a field sobriety test after being questioned and refused to take a breathalyzer test. He was taken into custody on suspicion of an OWI. And when CBS president David Berson made a statement during a network event on August 12, his response was:
“It’s an evolving situation, and therefore we’re still assessing. There is no timetable or final decision at this time. We had to consider the impact on our image and on our brand. That’s very important to us. Whether the games, marketing, PR, social, the focus should and needs to be on our presentation and not on any other factors.”
The statement doesn’t make a strong case for Romo’s return to CBS. A decision in Romo’s situation could come down to the clauses in his contract. If there is an out clause in the contract, Romo could lose his spot at the network. However,
In any case, the network will likely wait until Romo’s scheduled court appearance on September 21. This week, the Milwaukee County District Attorney’s Office formally cited Romo for three separate violations. Per TMZ, the citations are: first-offense OWI, unsafe passing on the right side, and possession of an open container of alcohol in his vehicle.
Per a statement from Romo’s spokesperson, “Tony accepts full responsibility for his actions and has taken proactive steps to ensure that this isolated civil matter is properly resolved. We are working with local authorities to bring this matter to a close, and we are communicating with CBS about next steps.”
In Romo’s absence, CBS promoted J.J. Watt to the No. 1 broadcast crew from the No. 2 crew. The latter said on social media that the career move did not occur “not the circumstances you’d hope it would happen under.” The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand believes that Watt has a good chance of continuing in the No. 1 booth, and it was “more likely [Romo’s] not back.”