Former Cowboys QB Tony Romo gets rave reviews in broadcast debut
Tony Romo got a passing grade in his broadcasting debut, to say the least.
The overwhelming majority felt Romo provided solid insight during CBS Sports’ broadcast of the Oakland Raiders and Tennessee Titans season opener on Sunday afternoon.
The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback saw things that enlightened your casual NFL fan, and came across as a veteran analyst rather than a guy making his debut.
ESPN writer Bill Barnwell praised Romo for “calling out safety blitzes before the snap and pointing out that the Raiders ran on third down to go for it on fourth down.”
Tony Romo calling out safety blitzes before the snap and pointing out that the Raiders ran on third down to go for it on fourth down.
— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) September 10, 2017
Wrote NFL Network’s Rich Eisen: “As I thought, @tonyromo is excellent in the booth. Energetic, knowledgeable, concise, likeable. And will only get better.”
As I thought, @tonyromo is excellent in the booth. Energetic, knowledgeable, concise, likeable. And will only get better.
— Rich Eisen (@richeisen) September 10, 2017
Added Bleacher Report’s Joon Lee: “Tony Romo is really, really good at this. Incredibly informative and he’s already predicted a few play calls today. Lots of energy.”
Tony Romo is really, really good at this. Incredibly informative and he’s already predicted a few play calls today. Lots of energy.
— Joon Lee (@iamjoonlee) September 10, 2017
Fans seemed to echo those thoughts on social media.
One fan wrote on Twitter that “Tony Romo killed it today with CBS. 10x better than Aikman ever was. #NoRomo #RomoReigns #AikmanAches #NFLSunday”
Tony Romo killed it today with CBS. 10x better than Aikman ever was. #NoRomo #RomoReigns #AikmanAches #NFLSunday
— NostraDaveus (@seeringverse) September 10, 2017
And another said: “Way to go @tonyromo ! Love it! I only tuned in for you! # myqb.”
Romo provided plenty of insight and even proved to show his football instincts in the booth.
When the Titans lined up for a play just before halftime, Romo told veteran play by play man Jim Nantz: “Jim, I’ve got $5 this is a run to the left.”
Titans running back Derrick Henry proceeded to run around the left end.
Asked by Nantz what he saw there, Romo joked: “I’ve seen football in the NFL for 14 years.”
Romo, 37, walked away from football this offseason and into the broadcast booth. He took over for Phil Simms as CBS’ lead analyst alongside Nantz.
Romo joined a long line of former Cowboys to enter the broadcasting world along with the likes of Troy Aikman, Darren Woodson and Don Meredith.
This story was originally published September 10, 2017 at 4:57 PM with the headline "Former Cowboys QB Tony Romo gets rave reviews in broadcast debut."