If you’ve been watching a lot of New England Patriots games lately, you’ve also been hearing a whole lot of Tony Romo. The Dallas Cowboys quarterback-turned-CBS analyst has been assigned to New England’s last five games dating to Week 15 and has called exactly half of the team’s contests this season.
But Patriots fans should hope to see a lot more of Romo next season, too.
New England’s comeback win over the Jacksonville Jaguars in Sunday’s AFC Championship Game produced a pretty remarkable (if somewhat coincidental) stat, courtesy of Reddit’s official Patriots page:
That’s right: The Pats went a perfect 9-0 this season — including 2-0 in the playoffs — in games called by Jim Nantz and Romo, CBS’ lead broadcast team. Here’s a rundown of their victories:
Week 2: Patriots 36, Saints 20
Week 5: Patriots 19, Buccaneers 14
Week 11: Patriots 33, Raiders 8 (game played in Mexico City)
Week 13: Patriots 23, Bills 3
Week 15: Patriots 27, Steelers 24
Week 16: Patriots 37, Bills 16
Week 17: Patriots 26, Jets 6
AFC Divisional Round: Patriots 35, Titans 14
AFC Championship Game: Patriots 24, Jaguars 20
New England came close a couple times, needing a miracle to defeat Pittsburgh in Week 15 and pulling out a sloppy game in Tampa Bay without Rob Gronkowski in Week 5. But Romo has yet to call a Patriots loss in his young broadcast career.
Of course, such a coincidence is bound to happen when you go 13-3. Yet the Pats were a pedestrian 3-3 in games not called by Nantz and Romo, and all of their losses came during non-CBS broadcasts: Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs on NBC, Week 4 against the Carolina Panthers on FOX and Week 14 against the Miami Dolphins on ESPN.
We can’t think of any actual explanation for why the Pats would thrive with Nantz and Romo on the mic. But considering Romo’s revealing observations about New England and the random success he’s brought the team this season, it’s a shame for Patriots fans that NBC has Super Bowl LII.
