AP Photo/Michael Ainsworth
Tony Romo is set to make more money as a broadcaster than he ever did as a quarterback.
- Tony Romo is reportedly set to sign a record-setting deal to remain the lead color-commentator at CBS.
- According to Andrew Marchand at the New York Post, Romo has agreed to terms on a deal that would pay him $17 million annually to call games alongside Jim Nantz.
- The deal would set Romo up to make more money as a broadcaster than he ever did as a player, and reset the market for top broadcasters at other networks, as well as for potential free agents like Peyton Manning.
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Tony Romo has secured the bag.
According to Andrew Marchand at the New York Post, Romo has agreed to a deal worth $17 million a year to keep him as a part of the top broadcast crew at CBS.
The deal would reset the market for broadcasters, since Romo's earnings would far surpass those of previous highly paid commentators, such as John Madden and Jon Gruden. While the precise length is not yet known, Marchand reported that the long-term deal is for "significantly more than five years," and would set Romo up to make more money during his broadcasting career than he did as an NFL quarterback. Romo made more than $127 million during his 14 years with the Dallas Cowboys.
CBS made the impressive offer to prevent Romo from becoming a free agent in the broadcast marketplace, according to Marchand.
Romo's contract with the network was set to end in March. Some rumors suggested ESPN might poach Romo with a deal worth $20 million annually, Marchand reported, in order to improve the network's bid to become part of the Super Bowl broadcast rotation. ESPN disputed that its offer would come close to such a number, however.
However, Romo now seems likely to remain alongside Jim Nantz calling the top game on CBS for the foreseeable future.
Romo first stepped into the booth in 2017 after retiring from the NFL, and made an immediate impression on viewers across the league by offering an astounding level of insight. He has a near-paranormal ability to predict how a play will unfold before the ball is snapped.
If Romo is indeed locked in with CBS, other networks would be left to figure out their next moves - and that could mean a monster offer for Peyton Manning, who has long been rumored as a possible heir to the "Monday Night Football" broadcast booth at ESPN.
CBS will once again host the broadcast of the Super Bowl in 2021. With his new deal, Romo would make more money than the majority of the players on the field.
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