Tony Romo's OWI arrest last week in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, has taken a new turn. The 46-year-old CBS sportscaster and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback allegedly refused a police request during the incident, according to a report by The California Post.
Romo was pulled over on an interstate highway after participating in a golf tournament in his home state. He performed poorly on field sobriety tests, leading to his arrest on suspicion of operating while intoxicated (OWI). Now, details have emerged that he also declined a test for intoxication after being taken into custody, resulting in an additional citation.
The arrest has sparked widespread discussion about Romo's future at CBS, where he is in the middle of a massive 10-year, $180 million contract. Dan Le Batard recently raised the question of whether the network might use this incident as a reason to exit the deal.
“There has been nobody in the history of my sports broadcasting watching that has been able to do what Tony Romo did,” Le Batard said. “But the evolution of the game changes so much that once he lost that parlor trick, almost immediately, what was Tony Romo’s stock started going down with everyone, including his employers, who reportedly had an intervention because they didn’t think he was working hard enough at what he was doing.”
Le Batard added, “Has his star diminished enough that you guys are thinking that whatever it is between him and Nantz that make them one of the premier broadcast teams in the league, but no longer the premier broadcast team in the league by observers, that you think given that his employers had to stage what was called an intervention to get him to work harder, now you have an incident like this that doesn’t have obviously the kind of shame that would end someone like Mark Sanchez’s career, but it has a shame involved that if you were looking for a reason to get rid of somebody, this kind of publicity is reason enough.”
Romo is scheduled to appear in court on September 21, the second Monday of the NFL season. He had been set to play in the M&P Group Texas State Open this week but withdrew over the weekend. CBS has not publicly commented on the situation, though network sources have confirmed they stand by Romo for now.
The arrest also brought attention to Romo's mugshot, where he appeared to be smiling, raising eyebrows among fans and media alike. It's a stark contrast to the serious nature of the charges he faces.
Romo's legal troubles come at a time when his broadcasting career has faced criticism. Despite his early success predicting plays, some observers say his performance has slipped, and the network reportedly staged an intervention to address his work ethic. Now, with this arrest, questions about his future are louder than ever.
