The American network CBS did not hesitate to freeze Tony Romo. The former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and current NFL star analyst was temporarily suspended from work after being arrested in Wisconsin on suspicion of driving while intoxicated.
Through a statement issued this Friday, the television station confirmed the sanction for the 46-year-old former player, who has three citations from the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office for the incident that occurred on July 23.
The police detected Romo's black Jeep passing cars at random in a divergence zone, which is the triangular space that divides the highway from the on-ramps. As if that were not enough, the analyst failed the field sobriety tests, so he ended up booked into the police station. To make matters worse, the official report details that the agents found an open bottle of alcohol inside his truck.
The thing doesn't stop there. Court records revealed that Romo became stubborn and refused several times to blow into the breathalyzer, a serious offense that will cost him another mandatory appearance before the judge.
With the preseason upon us and the 2026 NFL campaign just around the corner, CBS decided not to take any chances. The network announced that historic former Houston Texans defensive back J.J. Watt will take Romo's place as lead analyst alongside narrators Jim Nantz and Tracy Wolfson. Watt had already debuted in front of the microphones last year and now receives the stellar promotion due to the indefinite leave of his partner.
The company's press release was dry and blunt: “Tony Romo has taken a leave of absence from his position at CBS Sports until further notice.” A direct bill for your irresponsibility behind the wheel.
This week the body camera images of the police officers who arrested him were leaked. In the video, Romo is heard using the pretext that he was coming from a golf course and that he was going to “visit his grandparents.” However, the officer told him the truth straight after noticing that he had red eyes, a glassy look, and a strong smell of alcohol.
The former Dallas idol will have to appear in court on September 21. Romo, who grew up in Burlington – about 50 kilometers from Milwaukee – left the fields in 2016 as a legend of the Cowboys, where he still holds the franchise's all-time record with 248 touchdown passes, while his record for passing yards (34,183) was barely broken by Dak Prescott last season.
