Following a DUI arrest and lackluster golf performance, the former Cowboys star faces an uncertain future as CBS pivots to J.J. Watt for the upcoming NFL season.
DALLAS - Tony Romo's awful golf weekend from earlier this month back home in Wisconsin keeps on getting more awful.
Last week’s CBS NFL season preview press conference was - unfortunately for the network’s top analyst - very much about his absence.
During the media session, which is usually about the network selling to the public the greatness of its lineup, CBS Sports president David Berson addressed the touchy and troubling issue as a follow-up to Romo's arrest for driving under the influence.
“I know there’s one topic that’s been in the news a lot lately,” Berson said, via multiple reports. “I know it’s on people’s minds here, so I’m gonna hit that right out of the gate, and that has to do with Tony Romo being on leave until further notice.
"I hope you can respect and appreciate that this is a personnel matter and a legal one for Tony, so I can’t speak to that aspect of things. What I can say is it’s an evolving situation, and therefore we’re still assessing.''
An "evolving'' issue? It sounds more like "devolving'' to us.
Romo, 46, a superstar in his days as the Dallas Cowboys QB, rode that fame into TV success as both a football and golf commentator who makes $20 million per year.
CBS management doesn't exactly sound like it has his back here.
“There’s no timetable or final decision at this time,'' Berson continued. "Since it continues to evolve and we’re on the eve of the season, I felt it’s very important that our team, the many, many hundreds of people who work on the NFL on CBS, have certainty and direction so we can definitively plan and focus on the production and marketing as we kick off the season.
"In making this decision, we had to consider the impact on our image and on our brand. That’s very important to us. Whether the games, marketing, P.R., social, the focus should be and needs to be on our presentation and this great product and not on any other factors.''
There have been persistent rumors that CBS has recently been unhappy with his work ethic. And the more Berson talked, the more it sounds to some like he and CBS are ready to turn the page.
Said the exec: “Fortunately, we have a very deep bench, and I’m really proud of the way everyone’s stepping up and responding. As you know, J.J. [Watt] will join Jim [Nantz] and Tracy [Wolfson] as our lead team in Tony’s absence. They’re already knee-deep in planning, and I have every confidence they’ll be great.”
Scandals in the golf world? They happen. Ask Tiger Woods. Ask Phil Mickelson. And what's this weird Zack Holland hole-in-one thing?
But this? This feels different. ... in part because of the lack of support being given to Romo.
Romo played in a tournament in Wisconsin that weekend before cancelling his planned participation back here in the Texas Open.
And now he sits in limbo, a network star who may be in the process of losing it all over one allegedly dangerous decision.
