CBS execs shunned Tony Romo after arrest over $180 million contract ‘resentment’: Colin Cowherd

Colin Cowherd said he believes Tony Romo’s relationship with CBS was fractured even before his OWI arrest last month.

Cowherd made an appearance on the “House of Strauss” podcast on Friday, where he discussed Romo’s standing at CBS.

Romo was placed on leave a week after his Wisconsin arrest, and JJ Watt will be taking his spot in the network’s lead NFL booth alongside Jim Nantz and Tracy Wolfson.

Cowherd, a Fox Sports host, believes the tension between the two parties started when Romo and CBS agreed to a 10-year, $180 million contract in 2020.

“When you go into contract negotiations, there was a moment in time that Tony Romo had tremendous leverage over CBS,” Cowherd said. “And he squeezed them for every nickel.”

Following his initial stardom on CBS upon joining the booth in 2017, ESPN pursued Romo for their “Monday Night Football” crew when Romo’s first deal with CBS was up.

ESPN’s pursuit gave Romo the advantage in negotiations with CBS.

“Even if you have leverage, it will create resentment somewhere upstairs,” Cowherd said. “And I’ve always thought with the CBS execs, they don’t defend him quite as quickly. Or, when this recent story came out, reportedly, for the first two days nobody from CBS contacted him.

“That’s what I heard from somebody who would know. And I thought, is there resentment upstairs? Because he had them. He had them dead to rights, and he got every penny he wanted.”

While CBS has publicly stood by Romo in the past for criticism on his broadcasting skills, they also reportedly held an “intervention” in 2023 with Romo to discuss his preparation habits as criticism grew over his booth performance.

With Romo’s current situation unfolding, CBS might have regained their leverage, as it’s unclear when or if Romo will be rejoining the booth this season.