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“Don’t Even Look at ESPN”: Cowboys Legend Reveals Roger Staubach’s Blunt Warning Against Joining the Network

Tony Romo hung up his helmet in 2017 and walked straight into CBS’s top booth. Within weeks, he was predicting plays before the snap, and the league’s most-watched analyst was born. His path made the broadcast chair look like the…

By Nilaav Ranjan Gogoi · EssentiallySports

Published: Saturday, 7 November 2026 at 5:24 PM

Key Things to Know

Roger Staubach warned Darren Woodson against joining ESPN, urging him to pursue commercial real estate instead.
Staubach warned Woodson that networks would eventually discard talent once ratings and novelty faded.
Woodson did not take the advice initially, working as an ESPN analyst from 2005 until leaving in 2019.

The Story in 60 Seconds

Former Dallas Cowboys safety Darren Woodson revealed that Hall of Fame quarterback Roger Staubach advised him against joining ESPN following his NFL retirement. Speaking on the Darren Woodson Show, Woodson stated that Staubach mentored him and pushed him toward commercial real estate instead, warning him that television networks treat talent like disposable commodities.

Despite the blunt warning, Woodson joined ESPN as an NFL studio analyst in 2005 after retiring from football. Although he saw colleagues such as Jerome Bettis get let go during network cuts, Woodson ultimately departed the network on his own terms in May 2019.

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