Football fans were incensed by NFL pundit Tony Romo's call of the Philadelphia Eagles vs. Buffalo Bills game on Sunday. Many viewers criticized Romo on X (formerly Twitter) for remarks they thought were off-topic and meandering.
When talking about the Eagles' defensive line early in the game, Sunday's broadcast took an odd turn when Romo made reference to his co-host Jim Nantz's physical attributes. It's the game at its core, Romo said, but it's not sexy like you, Jim.
"It's not sexy like you, Jim."- Tony Romo
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 26, 2023
(h/t: @JimmyTraina) pic.twitter.com/NvkfvK6V0V
Perhaps because Romo's "sexy" comment was made just days after Thanksgiving, when he made widely-discussed remarks regarding Dolly Parton's halftime show, social media was even quicker to jump on the opportunity.
With a big smile on his face, Romo described the performer as "wearing the Cowboys cheerleading outfit." Did you not see that coming? "I believe she will wear a small cheerleading outfit tonight," you said. I thought, "Whoa, that's really good." She really does look amazing. She is amazing. Does anyone not enjoy Dolly Parton?
Nantz appeared a little uneasy during the exchange when he tried to bring Romo back to the topic of the game itself.
Jim Nantz better BONK Tony Romo
— Devine Sports Gospel (@DevineGospel) November 23, 2023
He’s too Horned Up for someone that didn’t go to the University of Texas pic.twitter.com/yYpVBEelbs
Numerous NFL fans made comparisons between Romo's Sunday performance and his earlier analysis. On X, a user named Michael Whitman commented, "Bro has been horned up for both Dolly and Nantz within 3 days lmfao."
On the platform, user DoxRock posted, "Just listened to a game commentary by Tony Romo, and now Jason Garrett?!" "I think the mute button looks really nice right now."
Leighton Crawford, an X-user, condensed Romo's commentary style into a few short sentences. "Jammy, please take a look at this.Look at this up top, Jim.It lacks the sexiness of you, Jim.See this, Jim, he performed a wheel route.Millions of [dollars] are being paid to bumass Tony Romo.
Romo's astute observations and accurate forecasts thrilled viewers when he made his debut as a CBS pundit. But as time has gone on, it appears that the former quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys has shifted more toward trying to be entertaining than educational. Fans and the network alike are not happy about the change. In 2020, Romo inked a historic $180 million contract with CBS.
NBC Sports reported in February that CBS has long been dissatisfied with Romo's actions. In the 2022 offseason, they even made an attempt at a "intervention" with the anchor.
Sports writer Andrew Marchand informed John Ourand on their podcast, The Marchand and Ourand Sports Media Podcast, that Romo's behavior "did not get better" in spite of the network's worries. Marchand provided an explanation of the executive's perspective on Romo's development, stating: "There's kind of a fine line between unconventional and undisciplined."