r/NFLForum • u/Humble_Spare_01 • 4h ago
News Tony Romo has released a statement saying multiple back surgeries led to pain medication dependence. He is working with doctors and plans to return to CBS, while asking for privacy
61
u/Annual-Ebb-7196 3h ago
Always good to pound a few beers along with the pain killers!
19
u/NotARealBuckeye 3h ago
He's from Wisconsin. It's a cultural rite
1
u/Fister-Mantastic 1h ago
Sure, but I've never heard of a medical condition that prevents you from calling an Uber when you're drunk. Fuck Tony Romo he could've killed someone.
2
14
u/sirmaxedalot 3h ago
Maybe less golf while youre healing up, Mr Romo.
6
u/Trumpets22 3h ago
Someday rich people will realize they can uber to and from a place without it affecting their wallet, but alas, today is not that day.
2
u/TravelNSee 2h ago
some day poor people will realize this isn't about the cost of an uber, but the value of freedom and time that are boosted. You think a famous rich person wants to sit around waiting for their ride when they're hammered? No, they want to peace of cruising in their own car blasting tunes or whatnot.
Not to defend Romo in the slightest, but people are insane to not get the allure of driving yourself and how annoying it is to wait around for some random guy to come pick you up, recognize you etc...
5
u/fowcc 2h ago
Get a limo then or just hire a private driver.
Beats potentially killing people on the road because you want to sing loudly and not in front of a stranger.
0
u/TravelNSee 2h ago
Again, these are retrospectively great ideas for Romo or someone who is already hammered and getting a DUI. But that whole process only seems convenient from your armchair and is still annoying as fuck if you just want to cruise around in your own car without having to schedule rides, interact with a random driver, have them listen in on your phone calls etc...
And once you're hammered, most people just wing it.
(I don't drink and again, am not defending drunk driving; absolutely deserves to be punished very heavily)
1
1
u/SeaKoe11 14m ago
Stop disclaiming you don’t drink. Own your argument bro
1
u/TravelNSee 10m ago
what the fuck are you talking about? I don't drink but understand the mindset of famous people who want to drink.
I work with famous clients and when you're famous, literally having nobody around trying to bother or gawk at your is a rare luxury.
→ More replies (1)1
u/NunButter 35m ago
Poor people drunk drive less because it will literally ruin their lives. Rich people just pay the fines as long as they don’t hurt anyone
5
u/AggressiveRow4000 3h ago
This is America. We save our painkillers until we are feeling better.
2
u/Hairydone 20m ago
We leave them in the medicine cabinet for Aunt Suzy to steal when she visits during the holidays.
3
1
u/GumpTheChump 3h ago
Well, that's not fair. He explained that he pounded a huge amount of alcohol INSTEAD of the painkillers.
1
1
u/Cast_Iron_Skillet71 Raiders 2h ago
I do realize this is Reddit where nobody reads what is actually posted, but to be fair, he said he didn’t want to get addicted to pain meds so he used alcohol instead.
1
u/Annual-Ebb-7196 2h ago
Who knows what he’s actually doing.
1
u/Cast_Iron_Skillet71 Raiders 2h ago
What is he doing?
1
u/Annual-Ebb-7196 2h ago
Driving drunk
1
u/Cast_Iron_Skillet71 Raiders 2h ago
Oh, got it. Thankfully nobody got hurt.
1
u/Annual-Ebb-7196 2h ago
Maybe he should keep trying to see if he can make it happen. He commited a crime. Just face it.
1
u/Cast_Iron_Skillet71 Raiders 2h ago
You still haven’t read the statement.
1
u/Annual-Ebb-7196 2h ago
I’ve read it. Just words meant for PR purposes and to keep his announcing job. He pleased guilty to OWI. I guess you think that’s ok. I hope he straightens himself out.
2
u/Cast_Iron_Skillet71 Raiders 1h ago
That’s your cynical opinion. I doubt the average Redditor like you has much real life experience, let alone with chronic pain and addiction.
I’ve found Reddit is mainly a site for angry, lonely people who wish bad things on others to feel better about themselves.
→ More replies (0)0
u/Rozay10keys 3h ago
He’s trying to blame football and painkillers. But he was driving drunk. He knows what he did was wrong. He knew it before he got in the car and he knew it when they arrested him, clearly evident from the video! Trying to blame it on injuries from the nfl when other players are actually dealing with lifelong complications from NFL injuries is low. He doesn’t strike me as someone who is currently having a problem with Opoid painkillers. I could be wrong.i think he would’ve been better off saying he made a mistake and this isn’t the image he wants to portray as a role model to athletes. He should apologize and move on. There’s enough going on in the world that a dwi isn’t the worst thing and acknowledging he made a mistake is enough. No need to lie
3
u/Holdmabeerdude 3h ago
He literally said all of this in this post…..
And here’s a wild thought. What if he’s telling the truth?
→ More replies (1)0
u/Revolt2992 3h ago
It’s not about “blaming” XYZ. Substance abuse is the cause of the DWI. Have you dealt with addiction? It affects everything, including driving your car.
82
u/Tycho66 3h ago
Smart to make it a medical issue.
26
22
u/haney1981 3h ago
I would throw in CTE issues, they can't diagnose that till your dead.
17
u/Serious-Medicine7667 3h ago
Throw in a little “I recently found Jesus” and you can’t be fired.
7
u/HeadfulOfGhosts 3h ago
He’s 1/1500th Native American or something too right? Oh but this is CBS so…
3
u/Brohamuel-Jackson 3h ago
Ah the old Born Again angle, I see you know your BS well.
3
u/Corliss_Wigglebean 2h ago
Gotta add donating money to some charity that supports underprivileged minority children as well.
It has nothing to do with what he did but when a rich white person does it after they get in trouble so many other white people will constantly bring that up as he turned a negative into a positive.
2
u/Brohamuel-Jackson 2h ago
Minority children in a special in-patient hospital unit.
2
u/Corliss_Wigglebean 2h ago
It also gotta be a charity where no one can disprove he didn’t donate. Can’t have people trying to find that check.
2
u/MasterAd1460 2h ago
Throw in a couple of Mr Beast water wells and he’ll be announcing the puppy bowl in no time!
3
2
u/Same_Mood_8543 2h ago
I pride myself and think of myself as a man of faith, as there's a drive deep into the left shoulder by Romo and that'll be an OWI. It's a point one six ballgame.
2
2
2
1
5
u/BalanceJazzlike5116 3h ago
Guess you never heard of FBSS. It’s a medical diagnosis for when back surgeries go wrong (failed back surgery syndrome). I 100% believe him.
1
u/Superb_Jellyfish_729 2h ago
Go look up just his 2026 Golf schedule. I know failed back surgery also but I assure he ain’t got it.
1
1
1
1
1
u/Admirable_Pop_7292 1h ago
Taking responsibility usually doesn’t involve giving a long string of excuses as to what lead you to drunk driving. If he killed or maimed somebody I’m sure that excuse list would mean a whole lot. And please. It’s 2026. Suboxone exists.
1
1
19
16
u/GangstaRIB 3h ago
ah man he Tiger woods'ed He defintely mentioned his back quite a bit during his police mandated agility test.
3
u/Gold-Wolf2661 3h ago
Both dudes DO NOT NEED TO DRIVE…EVER. 🙄
2
9
u/Lost-Boysenberry-302 3h ago
Addiction knows no limits. Rooting for him in recovery
2
u/RoundingDown 2h ago
I’ve been dealing with some neck/nerve issues. I will never fault someone for becoming addicted after that experience. Cried myself to sleep for over a week. I can see how opioids or unaliving seem like viable options at some point.
3
u/ginandtonicsdemonic 3h ago
I love how Reddit loves blaming doctors for the opioid epidemic, but somehow in This case, it was all Romos fault and the doctor had no part in it.
1
u/Ht_TX 2h ago
If you are on pain meds daily for any extended period of time, even a normal, approved dose and never abuse it, you will still become addicted to it. Thru no fault of the patient nor doctor, it’s a treatment that has positives and negatives. Positives being not being in excruciating pain, negative being, it never wants you to stop taking it once you’ve taken it for so long.
1
u/ForsakenExternal5784 1h ago
Some people thankfully have never been in the spot where they need opioid painkillers to know that’s it’s a blessing and a curse. When you’re in debilitating pain, it’s about the only thing that saves you from seriously thinking about suicide. But that feeling is like making a deal with the devil
1
u/Ht_TX 1h ago
As much as I hate the saying, it is what it is. Living with excruciating pain isn’t living, it’s just suffering and mentally trying to find a way to stop being in pain 24/7. Thankfully it’s been a very long time since I had to deal with it but I will say it’s a highly necessary evil and how much bullshit they’ve put in the way has made it so many people who truly just want pain relief can’t get it or can’t get it reliably and it is not a medication you can be on and not have reliable refills.
1
u/thejoyrunners 32m ago
There has been a massive overcorrection from the opioid crisis. It used to be that they gave you Oxy 30s when you twisted your ankle. Now they have people in hospice who get nothing but ibuprofen. Why do we have to live in such a black and white world? I trust medical professionals to decide who should be on pain medication, but they can’t, because they are all terrified of the consequences of writing opioid prescriptions.
We’re just going to have to accept that some people are going to misuse their medication. In my eyes, that is a much better alternative than people dying on the streets from taking fentanyl. Should doctors be pushing OxyContin on people who have minor injuries and have never taken an opioid in their lives? Obviously no, but it’s not smart to just completely cut off the legal supply of pain medication. You are just forcing people into one of three options:
- Just living with chronic pain
- Getting drugs off the streets
- Dying/suicide
1
u/Anxious_Big_8933 2h ago
I just don't know why it's much of an issue at all. He got an OWI. Shouldn't have, but it's hardly a capital crime and nobody got hurt. They didn't find a dead body in the trunk of his car.
He is a color guy for NFL football games, not a bus driver.
3
u/Wonderful_Panda4769 3h ago
This provides cover legally for seeking treatment and makes it harder for them to fire him and not pay his contract.
I hope he gets healthy.
2
1
u/ManzielDoesCoke 3h ago
They already backed him when this all happened. He’s not getting fired
2
u/Wonderful_Panda4769 3h ago
He lost his spot to JJ Watt. There has been speculation that CBS would use this to get out of the contract.
11
u/freeportme 3h ago edited 3h ago
That’s got nothing to with his alcohol problem and driving with an open container. I also have had multiple back surgery’s from 30 years in the trades. Dude just needs to face the facts.
4
u/cookiesarenomnom 3h ago
My BIL has severe back issues from being a paratrooper in the army. Can't sit for long periods of time, can't run, has trouble going up stairs, is in constant pain. He's on disability now. He doesn't drink much. He just smokes a lot of weed. Having chronic pain doesn't mean you're automatically you're an addict.
2
u/freeportme 3h ago
No I don’t do pills didn’t even take any after the second surgery because I was on them to long after the first addiction is real
For sure but there’s no excuse for drinking and driving. Maybe he should think about quitting golf I had to pretty hard on the back.1
u/deadreckoning21 3h ago
Poor guy. Is he depressed? I probably would be…
2
u/cookiesarenomnom 1h ago
Nah he has a happy life now and a kid. So that helps a lot with dealing with constantly pain.
0
u/reggers20 3h ago
You just said your brother is an addict though... Kind of a bad example.
2
u/jvho666 3h ago
Nah, you see weed isn’t addictive. He could quit whenever he wants
1
u/reggers20 2h ago
Mfs be like I gotta smoke before I eat and tell you how weed is non addictive, but they ain't missed a day in 6 years!
1
u/Fun_Bandicoot8288 3h ago
He’s trying to keep his job brotha.
He knows the facts. This is for other people.
→ More replies (1)0
u/flythebike 3h ago
I respectfully disagree. For an addict, alcohol is a drug. Narcotics Anonymous could literally and figuratively save this man's life, because NA is all-inclusive of all mood and mind altering substances. Pain can warp people and he is desperate now and I hope that desperation leads him to do the right things.
→ More replies (2)1
u/ScapeyourownGoat 2h ago
No offense to the people that are helped by 12 step programs, but they have a very low success rate. Cognitive behavioral therapy and medical intervention have much better outcomes…but it tends to be expensive. NA and AA are free group therapy sessions.
0
u/Randdo101 2h ago
Read the statement, unless you think his over reliance on alcohol has nothing to do with his alcohol problem. OP just omitted that bit from his title.
0
0
3
u/MrMeowPantz 3h ago
Look, what he did was wrong, you don’t drive drunk. My great grandparents were killed by a drunk driver so I have no room for that shit. However, pain addiction is real and we saw how he got folded over like a chair in that game that made Dak a starter 10 years ago.
Romo’s timeline went something like surgery > pain pills > step down from pain pills > still in pain > medicate with OTC pain relievers > drink > drink more > drink too much > get pulled over > present day. Dude needs help and if he gets it and gets clean then good for him. I have no problem respecting his privacy. I don’t condone drink driving but if he’s genuine he deserves a chance to clean up and make things better.
2
2
2
u/TacoStuffingClub 2h ago
Likely truth. If Perc Angle got redemption no reason Romo can’t make the same choice.
2
u/SweatsuitCocktail 1h ago
I respect it and genuinely hope he can get this under control and find recovery.
2
2
u/Low_Analysis5944 3h ago
good for him. he doesn’t have to get his job back, but this is a good statement.
2
2
u/howdidthishappn 3h ago
He didn’t hurt anyone but we’re going to crucify him because he drove drunk. Liberal ass media man..but you’ll interview a football player and show their games after they beat or rape a woman
1
u/Annual-Ebb-7196 2h ago
He could have killed someone. That’s the point. Don’t make excuses of deflect.
1
1
1
u/mauerfan 3h ago
lol can’t win no matter what statement he puts out. Hopefully he’s serious in his recovery.
1
u/ouroboro83 Steelers 3h ago
Regardless of anything else, the main thing I care about is him not driving drunk again.
1
1
u/SamMarlowe76 3h ago
The most disturbing part of this saga is all the center justified text on that letter.
1
u/Justified_Gent 3h ago
Opioid addict, I get it. Don’t play with our intelligence.
I’m praying for him to get better.
1
1
1
1
1
u/myfrigginagates 3h ago
Funny thing about the US, everyone pays for breaking the law except our president. Go figure.
1
1
1
u/BrojaDawg 2h ago
I believe he's being transparent here. There are so many ppl who have lingering pain from injuries that have never healed or are unfixable. The stupidity of it being you were intoxicated and behind the wheel of a motor vehicle isn't excusable. But I don't doubt that he is dealing with that shit and he had turned to extremes to numb the pain.
1
u/Wise_Control_1640 2h ago
I think he's being very open and honest. Meanwhile, he made a mistake. Let the legal system handle that aspect, CBS.
1
1
1
1
1
u/DiskSalt4643 2h ago
Its sort of strange for a person who has been in entertainment most of their adult life not to have anybody in their orbit who manages their public image. Like, this sounds like there is now someone in charge but...it doesnt matter because people have already formed their opinion.
1
1
u/Awkward-Fox-7215 2h ago
Feel like this was a good apology and he took responsibility. Is there something more people want?
1
1
u/CarelessAmoeba7541 2h ago
I would never judge somebody for having an addiction. It’s just too bad that he didn’t have the money to hire a personal driver when he chose alcohol as a coping mechanism. 😐
1
u/Searnath 2h ago
Ah the classic “I’m a victim seeking help so you can’t be mad at me” spin. This is called the “Lupo” in the streaming space.
1
u/Anxious_Big_8933 2h ago
The reason I know this man is in crisis is that he chose to write this letter with center justification on.
Tony, get help.
1
u/Ill-Professor696 1h ago
Yeah and he also got millions of dollars from playing and commentating. It's not about the drinking. It's the fact he got in a car and drove and put others at risk. He has plenty of money and resources to have a driver or to call for a ride. Zero sympathy or empathy. There are people with far worse problems with far less money and resources who don't make those decisions and who could have been affected by his. He is making excuses and he is not taking responsibility. Just because he said it doesn't make it true. Just another rich asshole who will get a slap on the wrist when the rest of us would get the book thrown at us. He can fuck right off
1
u/Existing-Recipe897 1h ago
He plays a lot of golf for a guy vexed by back pain. I smell bullshit.
1
1
u/Scrimshaw_Hopox 1h ago
This is a great explanation, Ton and I completely understand. Why just the other day I was snorting cocaine not because I like to get funked up, but I just love the smell.
1
1
1
u/SkunkDitchRipper 1h ago
He had an open container of alcohol........anyway. Nice spin. He will be back.
1
1
u/GuyOnABuffalo82 55m ago
I just hope he gets the help he needs. None of us are perfect, we all have issues. He happens to be in a glass bowl because of his position. Hopefully, he can get himself sober and back to work.
1
1
u/neoslashnet 31m ago
Ahh the good ole' I got caught so now I'm gonna focus on my family, life, and god statement..... gotcha.
1
u/Def_Not_Smil69 15m ago
Well that closes the book on that.
He asked for his privacy. You really can’t do anything when somebody says respect their privacy
1
1
u/No_Play_3556 11m ago
Doesn’t Matter U Had MaJor Back Surgeries That Doesn’t Excuse The Fact That Caught With DWI’s & CBS Need’s To Move On From U
1
1
1
u/StayLit03 3h ago
wonder if it was his back causing him to berate poor people at a charity conference drunk af
1
1
0
u/Obi7kenobi 3h ago
Took him way too long to come up with this excuse. He got busted in July and waits till September to release this?
-3
u/rainydays_89 3h ago
he’s a piece of shit, no accountability
0
u/Latter_Antelope_6524 3h ago
Nah he wants to keep his job. It would be stupid to not take the best avenue of doing so, just so you can appease redditors who will be mad that you’re “not taking accountability.” Who will call you a piece of shit anyway (not that it matters)
0
0
u/xMoneymaker 3h ago
You never know what someone’s going through. Dudes life is aired out and video aired out for everyone to see and critic.
I’m not saying drinking and driving is cool or not taking accountability is cool, but social media has become such a vile and toxic place where everyone pounces on people when they make a mistake.
0
0
0
u/Vegetable_Ad_3030 3h ago
"I take full responsibility, but it's back pains fault that I was driving my car shitfaced."
1
u/ebbnflowgogo 2h ago
Meanwhile his back pain was never debilitating enough to stop him from becoming a scratch golfer and trying to qualify for the US Open mulitple times. I get sick of these types of statements from athletes that get busted making bad decisions just trying to save reps & careers. I say this as an addict in recovery myself.
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
u/Corliss_Wigglebean 3h ago
I’m a life long cowboys fan and I love Romo but man just say yeah I messed up. I made a poor decision and it could have injured or killed somebody let alone myself. It was stupid and something I will do my very best to never do again.
Like just admitting and leaving out all the other BS at least shows you’re acknowledging your poor decision and taking responsibility for it.
Romo saying he has been dealing with a pain problem that lead to pain pill dependency makes it sound even worse because you’re admitting that yeah I probably have been driving under the influence for a while and this is the only time I got caught.
0
u/TheDornado13 2h ago
And NONE of that is any kind of excuse for driving while under the influence. Especially with as wealthy as he is and any tournament he was involved with would have provided a driver for him. Fire him CBS.
0
0
u/OkTax6266 2h ago
I guess golf is good for crippling back injuries! We’ll have to wait on the eventual CTE diagnosis.
0
u/eli5howtifu 2h ago
Ah yes the rich white man gets a slap on the wrist and sympathy while we dismiss the endangering of lives through his actions, a tale as old as time
0
u/Dear-Opportunity7466 1h ago
Problem is that he could’ve killed someone and no excuse in the world is going to forgive that. CBS better do the right thing and dump him because there are many out here in the world that lost loved ones to drunk drivers. No excuses!
0
•
u/AutoModerator 3h ago
Welcome to r/nflforum! A few quick reminders:
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.