This is the simple way Tony Romo explained his broadcasting plan before the season:
“If guys are playing good, you talk about; if guys are struggling, you talk about it,” Romo said. “It’s not like you are making stuff up, the game plays itself out in front of viewers. I know more detail about it, but it’s not like I am saying things that you can’t see with the naked eye.”
The “more detail” has led to the former Cowboys quarterback being one of the more celebrated broadcasting hires in recent years. His familiarity with the current game and ability to recognize defenses — thus allowing him to sometimes predict what will happen before the play — has impressed viewers.
Is Romo revolutionary or repeatable?
Players have come straight from the field to the booth and have had success before, from Phil Simms to Troy Aikman.
FOX thought it had its own version of Romo this offseason when it hired Jay Cutler for its No. 2 booth. That marriage was brief after Ryan Tannehill tore his ACL and Cutler reunited with his old Bears offensive coordinator Adam Gase, who is now the head coach with the Dolphins.
“When we hired him, we knew it was a possibility,” said Jacob Ullman, FOX’s senior vice president of production and talent development.
“Obviously, we wanted to work with him, but I wouldn’t say we were shocked. It was always something we understood. … We’ve left the door open for a return, both sides are open to the possibility.”
In the meantime, the network will give another current player an opportunity, with Panthers star tight end Greg Olsen joining the booth alongside Kevin Burkhardt and Charles Davis — the spot Cutler would have occupied this season — for Sunday’s game between the Vikings and Rams.
It’s a development that has been in the works for some time. Olsen called a rehearsal game with Burkhardt in Los Angeles in 2016. Like Romo, he has impressed with the way he converses during production meetings between star players and network’s talent and producers. He was also familiar with Burkhardt, who had called his high school games in New Jersey.
“You’ll see active players pop up on various networks and it’s feeling out on both sides,” Ullman said “The goal is to create some compelling television, which I think comes with having a Pro Bowler, but yeah it gives you a feel for how they’ll do in a live situation.”
Olsen is 32 and in the twilight of his career. He spoke passionately about this opportunity after Vikings general manager Rick Spielman complained to the league that it would give Carolina an unfair advantage when they played Minnesota in Week 14. The Panthers have a bye this week.
Olsen and Cutler could be two options if FOX or another network look to choose from recently retired players to match the magic CBS has found with Romo.
“They’ve played against the players they are talking about,” Ullman said of the advantage of newly retired players. “The example of Michael [Strahan] from his first year with us, he had played against the Dolphins in the first-ever London game and the next year when we were talking about it. He was the only guy on TV that could speak to that.
“It was like, ‘Oh, that’s why we have him on our show.’ He’s so current, so relevant and I think you are kind of seeing that with Tony Romo. His ability to recognize defenses and when he was doing the Cowboys game the other day, he knows what it’s like to play with Dez Bryant. That’ll give him a lot of relevancy.”