Tony Romo downplays criticism of his performance in CBS booth

While the pushback against CBS game analyst Tony Romo has been particularly loud this season, the network’s numbers are as high as ever.

So despite having an opening on The NFL Today following the departure of Matt Ryan and a strong emerging No. 2 booth of Ian Eagle and J.J. Watt, there is little evidence to suggest that CBS would go so far as to demote Romo or his longtime partner Jim Nantz.

With CBS’ season complete coming off a snowy AFC championship game, Romo joined The Pat McAfee Show on Tuesday for a rare longform interview. Romo largely dismissed the growing backlash to his performance in the booth, pointing to strong viewership numbers and the praise he receives from fans around the country as evidence that he and Nantz are still going strong.

“I think it goes with the territory,” Romo said. “People are like, ‘What about the criticism?'”

“You’re doing you, and you’ve got to be yourself and everything. You’re trying your best, and it’s not like you’re ever not trying your best to be great at something. But then you look at it and it’s like … the noise is the noise. It’s part of being in this job. To me, it’s like, it’s up, it’s down. But at the end of the day, you don’t really listen to things.”

“The criticism comes with the territory..

I’m always gonna be myself and it’s all part of the process” ~ @tonyromo #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/bUz88FaGmy

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) January 27, 2026

However, Romo’s miscues down the stretch of the NFL season went deeper than one fan’s taste versus another’s. On multiple occasions during the playoffs, Romo was completely unaware during key moments, including on one Josh Allen rushing touchdown in Jacksonville during the Wild Card round and another, similar play by Allen in Denver the following week.

The former Dallas Cowboys QB continues to be a football Magic 8-Ball on a handful of plays each week, but is becomingly equally known for botching basic facts. Just this postseason alone, Romo mistakenly referred to Allen as “Mahomes” and appeared to forget whether Buffalo was favored against the Jaguars.

As Romo’s struggles compounded through the winter, media voices ranging from the Pardon My Take hosts to The Athletic’s media insider Andrew Marchand called him out. Social media was regularly just as focused on Romo’s highs and lows as the action on the field.

Still, as is the case with most broadcast decisions, viewership remained strong. Romo believes that so long as people continue to watch, he doesn’t have much to worry about.

“All the fans come up to me and say they love us and everything … that’s what I feel. As far as looking at stuff online, it’s just part of the process,” he told McAfee on Tuesday.

“But I don’t think it really changes things. If everyone likes me, they’re watching (me). So there has to be something there. But we’re also commenting on their teams that are winning and losing. I don’t like someone when he’s not fully rooting for my team. So there’s a balance you try.

“I root for both teams. I root for guys who love the sport, care so deeply, and want to win. I want them to care as much as I did. And those are the guys you kind of root for a little bit, and sometimes that comes across a certain way, but I love it. It’s a great job.”

In early 2023, reports surfaced that CBS had staged an “intervention” with Romo the previous summer regarding his preparation and sharpness on-air. The noise around his inconsistency calling games never really died down. Most assumed the network was desperate to salvage its relationship with Romo because he is under contract through 2030, making nearly $18 million annually.

New CBS ownership may feel differently. Aside from a massive deal with the UFC, new Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison has not made much of a splash on the sports side of the company. But with Ryan’s vacancy and NFL broadcast rights deals up for renegotiation over the next several years, Romo may have to worry about more than viewership metrics before long.