The early reviews on Tony Romo’s broadcast debut are in, and they’re good! All he had to do was not suck like Phil Simms, saying insightful things like — "four new players go in. Four players go out."
It’s a pretty low bar, but Romo cleared it by a mile. It’s just one game and I don’t want to overreact after years of Simms fatigue, but he’s really good. Romo and Jim Nantz were in the booth for the Raiders-Titans game on Sunday.
Here he is talking about safety blitzes before the snap and what the Raiders did on third down so that they could go for it on fourth down.
Yeah, that’s not what you’re used to getting from anyone else in a broadcast booth.
Hell, he might be clairvoyant. Look at this.
Whoa.
Romo isn’t just clearing the bar, he’s setting a new standard.
His boss, CBS Sports chairman Sean McManus, was happy with him too, mainly because Twitter wasn’t mean to him.
“I was pleasantly surprised, because social media by and large is very negative, for everybody, for all announcers and all networks. The fact that it was positive is satisfying for me, but I also take it with a grain of salt.”
Good job, social media users!
Scouting report: Tony Romo, color commentator
Strengths: He’s having fun up there, and it’s contagious for the folks at home. Insight. Romo is calling plays before they happen and giving fans about as close as they can get to a first-hand account of what’s happening in the huddle.
Weaknesses: Tends to slip into football jargon from time to time that may go over the casual fan’s head. Needs to get more comfortable with the banter when he’s not breaking down a play.
Comparison: Cris Collinsworth. Another former player known for giving fans rare insight into what’s happening on the field and easy going demeanor.
Romo’s debut will have fans wondering whether or not he can lead CBS in the playoffs. With CBS the home of the Super Bowl in 2019, he may finally get his chance to go to the big game.