Tony Romo and CBS Sports agree to part ways; JJ Watt stays in lead NFL booth

Tony Romo and CBS Sports announced on Friday, October 2, that they had mutually agreed to part ways, ending his nine years as an NFL analyst for the US network. CBS said JJ Watt will remain on its lead game broadcast team for the rest of the season, giving viewers a confirmed plan for the booth that Romo occupied before going on leave.

‘CBS Sports and Tony Romo have mutually agreed to part ways,’ the network said in a statement obtained by NBC Sports. CBS thanked Romo for his contributions and wished him well. Its statement did not give a reason for the separation or disclose its financial terms. The announcement makes his departure definitive after months in which his return had remained undecided.

Who will call CBS’s lead NFL games?

CBS said Watt will continue alongside play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz and sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson on its lead NFL announce team for the remainder of the season. Watt had already taken Romo’s place during his absence, so the announcement confirms the existing team’s role through the end of this season. CBS’s statement did not settle who will hold the analyst’s seat beyond then.

Watt joined CBS in 2023, according to CBS News Texas. He spent two seasons as an analyst on The NFL Today before moving to the network’s second game crew last season. During Romo’s leave, Watt joined Nantz and Wolfson on the lead crew, while Ross Tucker moved to the second team. That change had already been made before Friday’s announcement; CBS has now specified how long Watt will remain in the top booth this season.

What Romo said about leaving CBS Sports

In his own statement, also obtained by NBC Sports, Romo said he was proud of what he had accomplished at CBS over nine years. He said he planned to take a break and focus on his health and family before moving on to another opportunity. He thanked the network, his family and friends, the NFL community and fans for their support. His statement did not identify a next broadcasting job or say when he might return to work.

Romo, 46, became CBS’s lead NFL game analyst in 2017 after a playing career spent entirely with the Dallas Cowboys. He played from 2004 through 2016 and made four Pro Bowl appearances, according to the Guardian. The newspaper reported that he signed a 10-year, $180 million contract in 2020, a deal then described as a record for an NFL analyst. Neither Friday statement explained what happens to any remaining contract payments.

The timeline from Romo’s leave to his departure

CBS placed Romo on leave before the 2026 NFL season following his arrest in Wisconsin in July. The Guardian reported that a Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office account described Romo performing poorly on field sobriety tests during a traffic stop. He was taken into custody, booked and released. The arrest and his subsequent court case preceded the separation, but CBS’s Friday statement did not say that either was the reason for its decision.

In August, CBS Sports president David Berson said there was no timeline for a decision about Romo’s future. CBS News Texas reported that Berson described the matter as evolving and said the network wanted attention on its games and presentation rather than Romo’s legal situation. Watt was assigned to the lead broadcast team while Romo remained on leave. Friday’s agreement resolves whether Romo will return to CBS, though it does not explain how the two sides reached that decision.

Romo pleaded no contest to an operating-while-intoxicated charge on September 1. CBS News Texas, citing a court order it reviewed, reported that he lost his driving privileges for six months and was required to complete an alcohol assessment program. The report said he must have an ignition interlock device installed on any vehicle he owns or operates for at least a year after regaining a licence. Those were consequences of the earlier court case, separate from Friday’s network announcement.

In a September statement reported by CBS News Texas, Romo said back surgeries had led to dependence on pain medication and that his efforts to stop taking it had led to an over-reliance on alcohol. He said he was working with doctors to make changes. Those statements describe Romo’s own account of his health. In his departure statement, he again said he would focus on his health and family, without setting out a timetable for another role.

For CBS viewers, the immediate question of who will work with Nantz and Wolfson is answered through the rest of the season: the network says Watt will stay. Romo has said he intends to take a break. Their statements leave his next professional move, Watt’s role after this season and the financial terms of Romo’s departure undisclosed.