So what happens now that Tony Romo has announced he’s retiring from the NFL to pursue a career in broadcasting? Well, what immediately happens is he will be taking over the role of color commentator for the CBS broadcasts of the NFL. He will more than likely be working alongside Jim Nantz, replacing former Giants quarterback, and longtime Denver hater Phil Simms. That by itself, probably did more to help Romo’s credentials with Broncos fans, than had he become their quarterback.
This still raises questions about Denver and their quarterback conundrum, and also begins the conversation of where Tony Romo’s place is in NFL history.
First obvious question, where does this leave Trevor Siemian and Paxton Lynch? Well, it leaves them about the same. Siemian is still looking to be the early favorite for retaining the starting job, but make no mistake Paxton Lynch wants to go out and play. If there are any lingering injuries for Trevor Siemian, Paxton Lynch wants to be ready if and when his number gets called. In his outing against the Buccaneers, he didn’t look all that bad. His first start against the eventual NFC Champion Atlanta Falcons, was pretty terrible, so there are some definite inconsistencies.
What if the Broncos can’t win at the quarterback position? I’ll answer this question with another question. Was the quarterback position the only problem Denver had this year? No. The offensive line was bad, the running game was poor in part due to the offensive line, and partly due to an injured CJ Anderson. The defense also had some holes along the front lines, which gave up over 2,000 yards rushing this season, ranking 28th. Siemian, had very little to work with, and had very little experience. If anything I’d say he did the absolute best job that he could, given all that he had to work with. If quarterbacks prove to be the only achilles heel of this team, then really Denver shouldn’t be super worried. Worried, but not super worried.
Are the Broncos going to make any kind of significant move in free agency? They probably should if they want to keep that championship window open. I keep reading little wire pieces about Joe Thomas wanting to come play for the Broncos, and I hope to all that is right in the universe that deal goes through. If I have to crowd-source enough money to get arguably the best left tackle in football, out of Cleveland and into Denver, I will start the GoFundMe page right now. Now I can make the pitch to Joe Thomas all I want about how Denver is a great sports city, the fans are crazy in love with the Broncos and how he would be receiving virtually unanimous praise from everywhere in Colorado, but really all I have to tell Joe Thomas is, “why would you want to stay in Cleveland? It has “leave” right in it’s name!”
What is Tony Romo’s legacy in NFL history? It depends on who you ask. Ask Jerry Jones, he’ll tell you Romo was one of the best Cowboys quarterbacks of all time, arguably one of the best of all time. Ask literally anybody else, and they’ll tell you, Tony Romo suffered from significant public backlash for being both a Dallas Cowboy, and an injury prone quarterback who was never able to secure a championship. The history of the NFL can be written with Tony Romo, and it can be written without Tony Romo.
Is Romo a hall of famer? No. Unless Skip Bayless clones himself and fills every seat on every subcommittee of the Pro Football Hall of Fame committee, Tony Romo is not a hall of fame quarterback.
What will become of Phil Simms now that he’s out at CBS? I don’t know, and I don’t care. Phil Simms was quite literally petitioned online at change.org to have him removed from the Broncos broadcasts. Now sure, Phil Simms’ broadcasts in Denver produced a winning record for the Broncos, but do you really think Phil Simms had anything to do with Denver’s wins? No! It was the greatest offense of all time in 2013, and the greatest defense of all time in 2015! When it comes to Phil Simms’ departure from the broadcast booth, there is but one quote I can think of that perfectly sums it all up: “Bye Felicia!”
