Predictably, Tony Romo had a broadcast full of opportunities to show off his prognostication skills during his first Super Bowl as a CBS analyst on Sunday.
But the former Dallas Cowboy’s endearing goofiness and self-deprecating nature is what ultimately gave viewers enough to digest during a championship game that was otherwise as compelling as watching Andy Warhol eat a hamburger — a record-low offensive output for the New England Patriots’ 13-3 victory over the Rams.
As the teams went into the fourth quarter with the score tied 3-3, a CBS graphic reinforced to viewers that they were witnessing the lowest-scoring game through three quarters in the Super Bowl’s 53-year history, and the first time the title game was without a touchdown this late.
“Lowest-scoring game for three quarters, first time no touchdowns, blah, blah, blah, no one’s scoring, no one’s moving the ball,†Romo said in response. “But guess what? It’s a tie game in the Super Bowl.â€
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Patriots quarterback Tom Brady celebrates a touchdown by Sony Michel against the Rams inthe 4th quarter in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes Benz Satdium in Atlanta Sunday.
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Rams quarterback Jared Goff watches after throwing an intereption in the fourth quarter as Patriots Adrian Clayton (94) and Duron Harmon celebrate.
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Rams receiver Brandin Cooks has his pass broken up by Patriots Duron Harmon (center) and Stephon Gilmore in the fourth quarter.
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Super Bowl MVP Julian Edelman hoists the Lombardi Trophy after New England beat the Rams 13-3 in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
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Los Angeles Rams quarterback Jared Goff (16) sits on the bench behind his teammate after giving up a late game interception.
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Rams quarterback Jared Goff is hit by Patriots Dont’a Hightower in the end zone after an incomplete pass in the 3rd quarter.
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Rams losing head coach Sean McVay walks off the field after meeting with Patriots head coach BIll Belichick in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes Benz Satdium in Atlanta Sunday.
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New England Patriots wide receiver Chris Hogan (15) hugs New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman (11) as the Patriots beat the Rams 13-3 in the Super Bow.
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Rams receiver Robert Woods walks off the field after losing to the Patriots in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes Benz Satdium in Atlanta Sunday.
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Rams running back C.J. Anderson, left, and reeiver Josh Reynolds look at the scoreboard late in the 4th quarter in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes Benz Satdium in Atlanta Sunday.
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Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski catches a pass in front of Rams linebacker Samson Ebukam in the 4th quarter in Super Bowl LIII.
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Patriots running back Sony Michel breaks free from the Rams defense in the 3rd quarter in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes Benz Satdium in Atlanta Sunday.
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Rams receiver Josh Reynolds makes a catch in front of Patriots Jason McCourty inthe 3rd quarter in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes Benz Satdium in Atlanta Sunday.
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Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Brandin Cooks (12) was wide open in the end zone but couldn’t hang onto a pass while getting hit by New England Patriots cornerback Jason McCourty (30) in the second half.
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New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman (11) beats Los Angeles Rams linebacker Dante Fowler (56) for a reception in the Super Bowl.
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Patriots receiver Julian Edelman leans into Rams defensive back Aqib Talib during first half catch and run in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
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Patriots defensive lineman Trey Flowers tips a pass that was ultimately completed to Rams receiver Josh Reynolds from Jared in Goff during the first half.
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Rams quarterback Jared Goff is harrassed by Patriots defenders as he throws a second half pass in Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
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Rams receiver Brandin Cooks fails to haul in a pass after it is broken up by Patriots defenders Stephon Gilmore and Duron Harmon during the fourth quarter.
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Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore intercepts a pass intended for Rams receiver Brandin Cooks near the end zone during the fourth quarter.
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Rams receiver Brandin Cooks can’t haul in a pass in the end zone as he is defended by Patriots defensive back Jason McCourty in the third quarter.
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Rams quarterback Jared Goff (16) barely gets a pass off under pressure from Patriots defensive end Trey Flowers (98) and outside linebacker John Simon (55) during the second half.
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Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski just misses a pass from Tom Brady as he is defended by Rams linebacker Cory Littleton.
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Linebacker Brandon King (36) lies in the confetti on the field after the Patriots defeated the Rams 13-3 in the Super Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
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Rams defensive lineman Aaron Donald drags down Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, forcing an incomplete pass during the first half.
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Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski (3) celebrates with offensive lineman Ted Karras (75) after kicking a field goal late in the fourth quarter to give New England a 13-3 lead.
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Patriots defensive back Stephon Gilmore prevents Rams receiver Brandin Cooks from making a catch in the third quarter.
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Patriots cornerback Stephon Gilmore (24) intercepts a pass intended for Rams wide receiver Brandin Cooks (12) to end a scoring threat late in the fourth quarter.
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Rams receiver Brandin Cooks walks away as Patriots defensive backs celebrate an interception by Stephon Gilmore to kill a fourth-quarter drive.
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Patriots defensive back Stephon Gilmore intercepts a Jared Goff pass in the fourth quarter.
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Patriots running back Sony Michel dives into the end zone for a two-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
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Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski hauls in a 29-yard pass to set up a Patriots touchdown.
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Adam Levine of Maroon 5 performs during the Super Bowl LIII halftime show.
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From fire to lights, Adam Levine of Maroon 5 performs during the Super Bowl LIII halftime show.
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Maroon 5’s Adam Levine, before he peeled off his shirt, performs during the Super Bowl LIII halftime show.
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Patriots cornerback Jason McCourty tries to grab the ball after breaking up a pass intended for Rams receiver Josh Reynolds during the first half.
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Rams defensive end John Franklin-Myers (94) and defensive tackle Ethan Westbrooks sack Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and forces him to fumble in the first half.
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Rams linebacker Cory Littleton intercepts a pass intended for Patriots receiver Chris Hogan in the first quarter.
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Patriots middle linebacker Kyle Van Noy sacks Rams quarterback Jared Goff for a loss in the first half.
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Patriots defensive end Deatrich Wise takes down Rams running back C.J. Anderson for a loss in the first half.
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Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski can’t catch a pass while defended by Rams cornerback Aqib Talib during first-quarter action.
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Patriots fans outnumber Rams fans at the Marta train stop near Mercedes-Benz Stadium before Super Bowl LIII.
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Rams tight ends Tyler Higbee (89), Johnny Mundt (82) and Gerald Everett (81) take the field to warm up for Super Bowl LIII.
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Rams running back Todd Gurley jogs around the field during warmups for Super Bowl LIII.
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Patriots fans yell for players during warmups before Super Bowl LIII at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) This postseason narrative of Romo’s prophetic play-calling had a couple of real moments, but none that matched what he did in the AFC title game when it seemed, for a time, that the plays were being called directly into his headset.
In the first quarter when New England’s Stephen Gostkowski lined up for a 46-yard field goal attempt, a CBS graphic noted kickers were 31 of 31 in field goal tries at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium during the regular season. Jim Nantz read the graphic aloud, and Romo jumped on him for jinxing it.
When Gostkowski missed, Romo razzed Nantz even more. Nantz replied: “Is that one of your predictions?â€
“No! I’m not predicting,†Romo yelped.
A few plays later, Romo said New England had “to respect the run†that he believed the Rams would try on a third-and-three situation from their 42. Jared Goff’s pass to Robert Woods was knocked away instead.
Maybe the only thing Nantz jinxed was Romo’s microphone.
Not long after, Romo was quiet for a couple of plays before he came back and said: “Well, my mic works again, so I can talk. This works out perfect. I was saying such good stuff on that play earlier, too. It was fantastic.â€
Most of Romo’s foreshadowing came on plays involving Patriots receiver Julian Edelman, the game’s most valuable player, as he questioned why the Rams did not double team him more often. The comments most often came setting up key third-down plays, before Tom Brady connected with Edelman, once leading Romo to reply: “They’ve been way too soft on him.â€
If we’re talking about too soft, perhaps Nantz and Romo were also that way with Edelman, failing to mention that he was suspended four games this season for violating the NFL’s policy on performance-enhancing substances.
The veteran Nantz, calling his fifth Super Bowl, might playfully oversell a record-rolling punt by the Rams’ Johnny Hekker. But most of the time he was allowing the rookie Romo’s personalty to shine.
After the Rams’ Greg Zuerlein converted a 53-yard field goal to make it 3-3 with 2 minutes 11 seconds left in the third quarter, Romo nearly shouted: “I can’t believe it! We got points! Three-to-three and it feels like we’ve got a scoring spree going on!â€
On the play that essentially ended the Rams’ chances to get back in the game — an interception by the Patriots’ Stephon Gilmore at the New England 3-yard line with 4:17 to play — Romo also screamed: “They went all-out pressure. [New England coach Bill] Belichick waited the whole game to send it. Gilmore wasn’t going to get beat deep.â€
After a commercial break, Romo showed on the Telestrator the play from an angle high above and behind Goff. Romo explained how New England rushed both safeties, Devin McCourty and Duron Harmon, yet Rams running back Todd Gurley could block only McCourty, allowing Harmon to pressure Goff.
At a time when we could have predicted Romo might have been bored with all he’d been watching, that proved he was still engaged.
Wolfson delivers under pressure
Along with offering several key updates on Gurley’s erratic participation in the Rams offense, CBS reporter Tracy Wolfson was put into a somewhat dangerous spot after the game, trying to conduct a live interview with Brady in a crush of media.
For several minutes, CBS’ cameras and live mics stayed on Wolfson, and she stayed composed as she finally positioned herself to ask Brady questions.
As for Gurley, Wolfson asked Rams coach Sean McVay about his availability just before the opening kickoff. McVay said Gurley’s “got a good look in his eyes.â€
But about halfway through the first quarter, Gurley’s absence necessitated Wolfson to circle back and report that “the Rams just told me there’s nothing to report†on Gurley, despite informing her he would be “heavily involved in the gameplan.â€
At halftime, CBS studio analyst Phil Simms referenced Wolfson’s report and could only guess that “he’s not 100%.â€
Wolfson came back in the fourth quarter with an update that McVay “told me it’s not the knee limiting†Gurley and teammate C.J. Anderson was “trying to be that mentor and keep Gurley focused.â€
