DALLAS (AP) — Tony Romo couldn’t say no when Dirk Nowitzki asked the retiring Dallas Cowboys quarterback to join the Mavericks as an honorary teammate for a day.
Now it’s turned into a scene, with dozens of media members showing up for a morning shootaround before a meaningless final Dallas home game against Denver on Tuesday night.
Romo’s “Mav for a day” experience came exactly a week after it was announced that he was leaving the Cowboys and joining CBS as the No. 1 NFL analyst. He lost his job as the Dallas starter to Dak Prescott last season and chose TV over pursuing a starting job with another team with his 37th birthday approaching next week.
“At first, I was just feeling like I didn’t deserve any of that,” Romo said of his initial first reaction to the offer. “Standing here today, I feel a little embarrassed to be honest in the sense that you’re lucky enough to be in position, that someone cares enough to do something to honor you.”
But Romo said it was a "no-brainer" to accept the offer of a tribute from Nowitzki and Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle. He will be in uniform in his football No. 9 and go through pregame warmups and introductions. Carlisle said Monday that Romo wouldn't play.
When the shootaround was over, a member of the Mavericks staff whistled a circus theme song while walking past reporters. On the court, Romo was playing with his youngest son, Rivers.
A long line of media members followed Romo off the court, then filled the room where Carlisle does his game-day interviews.