Tony Romo Makes A Historically Inaccurate Callback In First Minute of Primetime Bills, Chiefs Game
Trouble performing in January ... once a Cowboy, always a Cowboy.
CBS color analyst Tony Romo got off to a rough start on Sunday for the AFC Divisional Round's primetime game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills.
Romo, the ex-Cowboys quarterback, dropped what he thought would be a clever callback to NFL history, only to erroneously mix up his fun facts.
Tony Romo Calls Back To Wrong Historical Play
In the opening minute of the game, Buffalo tight end Dalton Kincaid batted a fumbled Bills ball out of bounds to prevent a recovery from Kansas City.
But Kincaid's batted ball traveled forward and out of bounds, earning the Bills an illegal batting penalty.
WATCH:
Not The 'Reception' ... It's The 'Roller'
Alongside Jim Nantz, Romo assessed the play and dropped a wild inaccuracy by referencing Steelers icon Franco Harris as the Granddaddy of the NFL's batted ball ruling.
During the replay, Romo deemed Harris responsible for the play that introduced the 'illegal batting' penalty.
Turns out, Franco Harris was never responsible for the seminal batted play that ushered an NFL rule on 'advancing' on a fumble recovery.
Romo thought of Franco and the Immaculate Reception, but the actual play was the "Holy Roller."
The Holy Roller is an infamous Raiders play where players batted a ball forward into the end zone, leading to a Dave Casper recovery for a touchdown.
Batting a loose football forward and picking up yards was outlawed after the 1978 play.
Harris' "Immaculate Reception," on the other hand, was a tipped ball that miraculously landed in Harris' arms for a touchdown during a playoff game against the Raiders in 1972.
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 17: Jim Nantz, Tracy Wolfson, and Tony Romo attend the 2017 CBS Upfront at The Plaza Hotel on May 17, 2017 in New York City. (Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)
On Sunday, Steelers fans flipped a lid after hearing Romo slander the great Franco Harris.
They called out the Holy Roller as the proper play, for much less than $180 million.
Romo thought he was slick and ultimately flopped.
As a color analyst for CBS, Romo continually falls short of his 10-year, $180 million contract. He joined the network in 2020. Coming into the 2023-24 season, Romo and CBS reportedly held meetings to discuss room for improvement for Romo. The 43-year-old suffered a streak of choppy seasons in the booth coming into 2023.
Nantz previously voiced his support for his booth buddy, defending him from the millions of viewers hoping for a new lead to shake up the CBS booth.