CBS Sports Says "No Timetable" on Tony Romo's Future After Drunk-Driving Arrest
CBS Sports CEO David Berson told reporters there is "no timetable" for a decision on analyst Tony Romo, who was suspended after a drunk-driving arrest in Wisconsin last month.
Speaking at CBS's annual NFL season preview event in New York, Berson described Romo's situation as "a personal matter, and a legal one" and said the network is "still investigating" with "no timetable or final decision at this time" (Deadline, 11 August 2026).
Romo, the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback who has served as CBS's lead NFL game analyst since 2017, was arrested on 23 July 2026 on southbound Interstate 43 in the Milwaukee area. He was pulled over on suspicion of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and booked on one count of operating while intoxicated, or OWI — the term Wisconsin uses for drunk driving (NBC DFW, 28 July 2026). Authorities later released bodycam footage of the arrest (CBS News, 4 August 2026).
CBS placed Romo on indefinite leave on 31 July 2026, according to a Reuters report published that day (Reuters, 1 August 2026). The network said he was suspended "until further notice."
In his place, CBS has moved JJ Watt — the retired three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, who had been the No. 2 analyst — into Romo's slot alongside play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz and reporter Tracy Wolfson. Watt will start the season in early September when CBS begins its NFL game telecasts (Deadline, 11 August 2026; Fox News, 31 July 2026).
A court date for Romo has been set for 21 September in Milwaukee, eight days after CBS's first NFL game telecast of the season. The potential penalty he faces is up to $1,066 in connection with the OWI charge (Yahoo Sports, 29 July 2026; Deadline, 11 August 2026).
Romo's contract with CBS is a 10-year, $180 million deal signed in 2020, and multiple reports have noted the contract may include a morals clause — a provision that lets an employer terminate the agreement if the employee's conduct brings the company into disrepute. Whether CBS will invoke it remains unconfirmed.
Berson also declined to address the pending $110 billion merger between Paramount — CBS's parent company — and Warner Bros. Discovery, which was raised by reporters at the same event (Deadline, 11 August 2026).
For viewers, the immediate change is straightforward: Watt, not Romo, will be in the booth when CBS's NFL coverage begins. What happens after that — whether Romo returns, is replaced permanently, or sees his contract terminated — is a decision CBS says it has not yet made.
