Tony Romo never really got to choose when one chapter of his football life ended. His body made that decision for him. By the time the Cowboys released him in 2017, he had played just five games across his final two seasons, with back problems and repeated collarbone injuries keeping him off the field. At 36, a quarterback who had spent 14 years taking hits was suddenly having to figure out what came after football.

The answer arrived faster than anyone might have expected. That same year, Romo traded the Cowboys sideline for a seat beside Jim Nantz and stepped into CBS Sports’ No. 1 NFL booth. He had to learn where to sit, when to jump into Nantz’s call and how to turn everything he had spent 14 years seeing from behind the center into something a viewer could understand. Romo has said that the pain from his playing days led to a dependence on pain medication and that his efforts to get away from those medications eventually turned into an over-reliance on alcohol. All of it led to an OWI case that practically ended his career, although he has also been clear that none of it excuses what happened.

After his Wisconsin OWI case was resolved, Julius Kim, the lawyer who had spent months representing him, finally felt free to talk about what he saw on the other side of the headlines. “I’ve been hush-hush about this the past few months as I was representing Tony,

“Now that this matter has been resolved, I’ll say that I’ve represented many, many people who have made poor decisions, and I can’t say that all of them see the error of their ways and work to grow from the experience. Tony handled this matter seriously, with class, and with dignity, and I know he’ll be an even better person from all of this.”

Kim’s comments also line up with Romo’s own response to the incident. While things appeared to be heading in a difficult direction for the former Cowboys quarterback, he took full responsibility for what happened.

CBS Sports eventually ended its relationship with Tony Romo following his July OWI arrest in Milwaukee. Romo was placed on leave by the network, but CBS announced on October 2 that the two sides had mutually decided to part ways.

According to the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Office, Romo was taken into custody after performing poorly on the field sobriety tests. He also refused to take a breathalyzer test. Later, it was reported that Romo’s blood alcohol content was 0.15, nearly twice the limit in Milwaukee.

Tony Romo pled no contest to the charge.

The incident ended what was a great career in football media. After Romo retired from his 14-year-long career, he began his career as a broadcaster for CBS Sports. In time, he became one of the most well-known voices behind the mic, forming a good rapport with Jim Nantz in the network’s No. 1 crew. Before he was let go, Romo was in the middle of his 10-year, $180 million contract he signed with CBS in 2020.

In his initial statement following the arrest, Tony Romo had looked forward to returning to the media someday. But according to his latest statement, he wants to take some focusing on what matters.

“I’m proud of what I accomplished at CBS Sports over the last nine years. I approached my role as a game analyst the way I’ve approached everything in my life with a desire to win and be the best that I can be,” Romo said. “I’m going to use this time to take a break, something I’ve never done before, and focus on my health and my family before moving on to my next opportunity.”

That break also comes after years of physical setbacks during his playing career. With Romo now stepping away from the booth to focus on his health and family, fans will have to wait and see when he is ready for his next chapter and when we might finally hear him calling games again.

Following his arrest, CBS has brought J.J. Watt in to replace Romo for this season. However, with the former quarterback out, the network has been linked to names like Troy Aikman and Greg Olsen to potentially replace Romo in the long run.