3-Time Pro Bowler floated as Tony Romo’s permanent CBS replacement

Tony Romo has called NFL games for CBS since 2017, pairing with Jim Nantz on the network's top broadcast team for nearly a decade. That partnership now faces a real threat of ending for good.

Romo's indefinite leave following a late July arrest has opened the door to speculation about who might permanently replace him, and one name has emerged as the clear favorite among industry insiders this week.

Greg Olsen emerges as leading candidate to replace Romo at CBS

The speculation gained fresh momentum through recent reporting from Pro Football Network breaking down the industry's leading candidate to take over the lead analyst chair at CBS.

CBS has already elevated J.J. Watt from its No. 2 broadcast team to fill in alongside Nantz and sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson while Romo remains on leave. Multiple insiders now describe Watt and Fox's Greg Olsen as the two names CBS is most seriously considering for the long-term role.

Awful Announcing's Matt Yoder laid out the case for Olsen in detail. "Greg Olsen has made no secret of his desire to be a lead analyst once again," Yoder wrote. "And wouldn't you know his Fox contract is coming up just when the NFL's other Sunday afternoon broadcaster is experiencing a crisis at their lead analyst spot." Yoder added that permanently sidelining Romo would likely strengthen the network's broadcast lineup overall, a sentiment echoed elsewhere in recent sports media coverage.

Romo remains under contract through roughly 2030 on a deal worth $180 million, with $72 million still owed. The agreement reportedly includes a morals clause, though legal observers note first offense citations rarely trigger automatic termination in contracts like his.

How an Olsen move would reshape CBS’s top broadcast booth

Elsewhere in the league, teams are locking in their own roster and personnel decisions before the season begins, with Matthew Stafford and Josh Allen recently headlining the league's top-rated players in Madden 27 as camps wind down nationwide ahead of kickoff.

Broadcasting shakeups aren't the only storyline drawing attention around the league this month, with several teams also fielding early praise for their offseason roster moves heading into training camp this summer. Olsen, for his part, has already drawn comparisons as a stronger analyst than Romo from fans and media critics in recent years.

No decision from CBS is expected before Romo's September 21 court date, which falls after the regular season has already begun in mid-September. Until then, both Watt and Olsen remain the two names most likely to define the next era of the network's NFL broadcast coverage.

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