Tony Romo biography
Tony Romo, byname of Antonio Romario Romo, (born April 21, 1980, San Diego, California, U.S.), American professional gridiron football player who emerged as one of the leading quarterbacks in the National Football League (NFL) in the early 21st century.
Romo spent most of his childhood in southern Wisconsin, the place he idolized Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre, whose aggressive, risk-taking fashion of play he finally sought to emulate. Although Romo was a standout participant for Burlington (Wisconsin) High School, he was not recruited by the foremost faculty soccer groups and wound up attending Eastern Illinois University, a Division I-AA college in Charleston, Illinois. At Eastern Illinois he was a three-time (2000–02) Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year, and in his senior season he obtained the Walter Payton Award as Division I-AA’s high offensive participant.
Despite being eligible for the 2003 NFL draft, Romo was once more missed. Later that 12 months he signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent, however he earned little enjoying time in his first three seasons. He didn't take over as beginning quarterback till 2006, when he changed an ageing Drew Bledsoe close to midseason. Romo blossomed virtually instantly within the starter’s function, serving to the Cowboys land a wild-card spot within the playoffs. His capacity to improvise performs and his willingness to throw downfield shortly made him a fan favorite. He completed the season having handed for 19 touchdowns and a couple of,903 yards and have become the primary Cowboys quarterback to be chosen for the Pro Bowl since Troy Aikman in 1996.
Although Romo was blamed for the Cowboys’ 2006 playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks—he dropped the snap on a probably game-winning subject purpose try—he returned to guide the staff to a 12–1 begin in 2007, one of the best in franchise historical past. The Cowboys went on to win their first National Football Conference (NFC) East Division title in 9 years, and Romo completed the common season with 36 touchdowns and 4,211 passing yards. However, the Cowboys had been upset by the rival New York Giants of their opening playoff sport, and Romo’s efficiency in massive video games started to be known as into query by some observers. The criticism grew louder in 2008 when the Cowboys suffered a 44–6 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles within the ultimate sport of the season with a playoff berth on the road. In 2009 Romo gained a measure of redemption as he handed for a career-high 4,483 yards (which was additionally a franchise report) and led the Cowboys to their first postseason victory in 14 years.
A fractured clavicle restricted Romo to only six video games throughout the 2010 season. In every of the next three years, the Cowboys completed with 8–8 data, lacking the playoffs by dropping to a division rival within the ultimate week of the common season every time. While Romo produced strong statistics over these seasons—together with breaking the Cowboys’ single-season passing mark with 4,903 yards in 2012—the staff’s mediocrity led to the continuation of the “Romo is not clutch” narrative. Although he threw a good variety of poorly timed interceptions, Romo was in truth among the many league leaders in fourth-quarter passer score throughout his profession and led quite a few game-winning drives. He had his finest skilled season in 2014, main the NFL with a 113.2 passer score whereas throwing 34 touchdowns and 9 interceptions. Dallas gained a division title that season, and Romo led a game-winning fourth-quarter drive within the staff’s opening playoff contest, however the Cowboys had been eradicated within the staff’s subsequent postseason sport. Romo was as soon as once more sidelined by an harm in 2015 as a damaged collar bone restricted him to only 4 video games, and the Cowboys staggered to a 4–12 report in his absence. In 2016 Romo was as soon as extra bitten by the harm bug when a damaged bone in his again sidelined him till midseason. However, the stellar play of rookie quarterback Dak Prescott, who finally led Dallas to an NFC-best 13–3 report, pressured Romo right into a back-up function after he returned to the lively roster.
In April 2017 he abruptly retired from the NFL and instantly joined CBS as a commentator for NFL tv broadcasts. At the time of his retirement, Romo had thrown for 34,183 yards (twenty ninth most in NFL historical past), 248 touchdowns (twenty first all-time), and had a 97.1 profession passer score (fourth highest ever). Romo was an instantaneous sensation within the broadcast sales space, incomes plaudits for his insightful commentary and his uncanny capacity to foretell what performs groups had been about to run. As a outcome, he signed a contract with CBS in 2020 price $17 million per 12 months, the most important annual wage for any sports activities broadcaster in historical past.