If the lure of Tony Romo as a color commentator continues to diminish, he can always attempt a career as a rules analyst, but probably not an impersonator.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen found Stefon Diggs for a touchdown late in the first half of their matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles on CBS on Sunday evening. Seeking reassurance that Diggs was able to keep his hand under the ball and prevent it from touching the ground, play-by-play voice Jim Nantz called upon the broadcast’s rules analyst, Gene Steratore to weigh in.
Does Gene Steratore sound a little different here? pic.twitter.com/Zg32w83VyW
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 27, 2023
“You see this as a catch,” Nantz said upon inviting the rules analyst into the broadcast. “Don’t you, Gene Steratore?”
It wasn’t the first time Nantz and Romo heard from Steratore during the Bills-Eagles, game, but this time, the rules analyst sounded curiously different. Almost as if CBS purchased a discount version of Steratore on Black Friday and decided to test him out Sunday afternoon.
A faint “I do,” could be heard as Steratore attempted to chime in on the Diggs touchdown, but then a louder voice, supposedly Steratore, joined the broadcast.
“Yes, I do, Jim,” the voice said. “I really feel like he got his hand underneath, and it’s gonna be a touchdown.”
Wait a second. That’s not Gene Steratore. That’s Tony Romo doing an awful Gene Steratore impression! Credit Romo for getting the call right, it was indeed a touchdown. But Romo pretending to be the CBS rules analyst by deepening his voice wasn’t fooling anyone, except for maybe Nantz.
“Thank you, Gene.” Nantz said as he played along with the bit.
Something tells me Romo isn’t much of an impressionist, and the voice he used for Steratore is the same voice he uses whenever he’s mimicking another person. The broadcast never pulled back the curtain to admit this rules analysis came from Romo, not Steratore. But they didn’t really need to.
[CBS]
About Brandon Contes
Brandon Contes is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and The Comeback. He previously helped carve the sports vertical for Mediaite and spent more than three years with Barrett Sports Media. Send tips/comments/complaints to bcontes@thecomeback.com