Tony Romo is set to call Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas this week and everyone seems to have their opinion on the CBS color analyst.
But in a new piece from the Washington Post, veteran NFL announcers across multiple networks have come out to defend Romo, including his partner Jim Nantz. They have seen how feelings toward broadcasters change over time and are publicly supporting Romo amid questions about his future at CBS.
“Reporters with nothing else to write have agendas and are looking for clicks and attention,” Nantz told Ben Strauss of the Post last year.
As in, Romo is an easy target. He says wacky things. But he was certainly propped up early in his broadcasting career by the very fans and media watchers who are hitting back at him now.
For Amazon’s Al Michaels, the backlash was predictable.
“Tony was the flavor of the month,” Michaels told the Post. “We’ve all been the flavor of the month … It comes and it goes. It’s so subjective and so arbitrary.”
Michaels added that the teardown happens across every industry, and the pushback against Romo is not unique: “People don’t want to see the golden boy Tony Romo anymore.”
Nantz explained Romo was trying to broaden his skill set this season, but it wasn’t received well. Early on, Romo became known for predicting plays. He tried to broaden beyond that one lane.
“He wanted people to know he wasn’t a one-trick pony,” Nantz said. “I think he wanted to try to have more substance. He didn’t want to be David Copperfield. So there’s less predicting.”
For two other NFL analysts, Romo’s legacy will be about the money.
Romo shook the industry when he was given a $17 million annual salary by CBS after his first year in the booth. A figure like Tom Brady’s $30-plus million salary may not have existed if not for Romo, and other analysts appreciate that.
“He doubled and tripled what anyone was making,” NBC’s Cris Collinsworth told the Post. “He will forever be one of my all-time heroes. I’m going to build a statue to the guy. He’s the greatest.”
But former Monday Night Football game analyst Booger McFarland warned that with great income comes great responsibility.
“When you’re on TV and you got 35-40 million people watching and you’re making $17 million, people want to nitpick every little thing you do,” McFarland said. “They’re not hoping you enjoy your $17 million.”
No matter how the Super Bowl broadcast goes, Romo will be a top story. But if these veteran NFL broadcasters’ comments are any indication, Romo may simply have to weather the storm and settle into a new phase of his broadcasting career where he’s no longer a golden boy, but can at least still be successful and highly paid.
