Network confirms end of nine-year partnership
CBS Sports announced Friday that it and Tony Romo have officially parted ways, closing a nine-year run that began when Romo moved from the playing field to the broadcast booth in 2017. The network’s statement said, “CBS Sports and Tony Romo have mutually agreed to part ways. We thank Tony for his contributions over the past nine years and wish him the best moving forward.”
The separation brings to an end a period in which the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback became the network’s lead NFL analyst almost immediately after retiring as a player. CBS placed Romo on its top broadcast team beginning in the 2017 season, a shift that reoriented the network’s game coverage through the last decade.
Legal troubles and leave preceded the split
The decision follows months of public and legal turbulence. Romo had been on indefinite leave after an operating-while-intoxicated arrest in Wisconsin during the summer, a status reported by Awful Announcing. Court filings detailed after a recent plea showed driving privileges were revoked for six months, an alcohol assessment program was ordered and an ignition-interlock device requirement was imposed, according to reporting in Yahoo! News.
Wsav-tv noted that the official parting came roughly one month after Romo pleaded no contest to the OWI-related charges. The move to end the relationship with Romo came as the network navigated both the legal fallout and public scrutiny surrounding its highest-profile game analyst.
CBS announced Romo's departure just as he suffered another poor showing in Oklahoma, where reports said he struggled to salvage his round.
Statements, settlement reporting and the next steps
In its release, CBS framed the split as mutual and expressed gratitude for Romo’s work over nearly a decade. Romo also issued a statement, reported by Awful Announcing, saying he planned to “use this time to take a break, something I’ve never done before, and focus on my health and my family before moving on to my next opportunity.” That statement signals his immediate focus will be personal rather than professional.
Awful Announcing further reported that the two sides reached a financial settlement before Friday’s announcement, characterizing the move as a way for the network to end speculation about a potential return. The reporting included opinion that Romo’s path back to the public eye could be straightforward, a view framed as commentary rather than established fact.
For context on the business side, Romo and CBS agreed to a 10-year, $180 million deal in early 2020 that reset the color-commentator market. CBS and Tony Romo have mutually agreed to part ways.
The parting marks a clear break for both sides: CBS Sports distanced itself from a marquee personality whose visibility had become entwined with legal and personal headlines, and Tony Romo appears to be stepping away from broadcasting for the immediate future to address matters he described as private. How — and whether — Romo returns to television remains a question observers and commentators will debate, but the immediate record shows a formal, official separation executed with public statements from the network and a personal announcement from Romo outlining his intent to focus on family and health.
