Tony Romo, Conor McGregor Blows Out His Knee, The World Cup Is All Blue Bloods + Mt Rushmore Of Guys You Want To See Ride A Horse

Summary of Tony Romo, Conor McGregor Blows Out His Knee, The World Cup Is All Blue Bloods + Mt Rushmore Of Guys You Want To See Ride A Horse

by Barstool Sports

2h 31m•July 13, 2026
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Overview of Pardon My Take with Tony Romo

This episode mixes a major interview with Tony Romo and a full breakdown of the weekend in sports, including Conor McGregor’s disastrous UFC return, World Cup drama, NBA Summer League news, MLB All-Star break talk, and a chaotic Mount Rushmore draft of “guys you want to see ride a horse.” The Romo interview is the centerpiece: he was candid, funny, and surprisingly self-aware about the noise around his broadcasting, his playing career, and how he thinks about football.

Tony Romo Interview Highlights

Tony Romo was relaxed and open throughout the interview, even joking about how the hosts have criticized him for years.

Broadcasting philosophy

  • Romo said he tries to explain why plays happen, not just call them.
  • He emphasized that the best announcers teach the game and help viewers understand leverage, personnel, and decision-making.
  • He admitted that announcing live is hard and that he still makes mistakes, but he wants to be useful and insightful rather than just entertaining.

Relationship with criticism

  • He said fan reactions don’t really bother him anymore.
  • He joked that the “Here we go, Jim” and “I don’t know, Jim” bits are so natural now that they’re part of him.
  • He was surprisingly cool with the hosts busting his balls and even encouraged them to keep doing it.

Playing career and football IQ

  • Romo walked through key moments in his career, including:
    • Being an undrafted QB at Eastern Illinois
    • Realizing he could play in the NFL
    • Early preseason and regular-season opportunities with the Cowboys
    • The pressure of being “the guy” in Dallas
  • He explained how football is about recognizing numbers, leverage, and structure rather than overcomplicating things.
  • He discussed how the NFL evolves in cycles, with teams copying the most successful systems and trends.

Cowboys, Parcells, Payton, and Dan Campbell

  • He credited Bill Parcells and Sean Payton as major influences.
  • He described Sean Payton as brilliant but intense and a little insane in a good way.
  • He praised Dan Campbell as a true alpha and a natural leader.
  • He said there are many ways to lead a team, but the key is knowing the game, being willing to sacrifice physically, and earning trust.

His regret

  • Romo said the one thing that still sticks with him is not winning a Super Bowl for Dallas.
  • He said he contemplated coming back for another shot, but it no longer felt like the right fit emotionally or professionally.

UFC 239 and Conor McGregor’s Injury

The crew spent a lot of time on McGregor’s lightning-fast loss.

What happened

  • Conor McGregor returned to UFC after a long layoff.
  • He appeared to injure his knee almost immediately and tore his ACL.
  • The fight ended before it really began, which was a huge disappointment given the hype.

The big debate

  • The hosts debated whether McGregor:
    • was already hurt and fought anyway
    • aggravated an existing injury
    • or possibly used the fight as a cash grab
  • The consensus landed on: he was probably hurt before, and the fight made it worse.

Other UFC notes

  • “Patty the Baddy” was a big favorite of the crew and considered one of the brightest future stars.
  • They briefly discussed the UFC’s future stars and whether the league still has a true face after McGregor.

World Cup Breakdown

The World Cup section focused on the knockout rounds and the fact that the final four were essentially the top-ranked teams.

Main storylines

  • The remaining teams were treated as the blue bloods of the tournament.
  • England’s usual heartbreak path continued.
  • Argentina and France were seen as the most likely collision course.

Controversy and VAR

  • There was disagreement about a yellow/red card situation involving a flop and mistaken identity.
  • The hosts argued about whether the call was fair, with the general takeaway being that the flop was egregious and deserved punishment.

Bigger World Cup themes

  • They talked about:
    • FIFA leadership and corruption jokes
    • expanding the World Cup to 64 teams
    • the changing power structure in global soccer
  • They also noted that Germany and Brazil have been disappointing lately, which makes the current final four feel like a reset toward traditional powers.

NBA Summer League, LeBron, and Other Basketball News

Bam Adebayo vs. Tyler Herro

  • They discussed a reported confrontation between Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro.
  • The story sounded more like a slap or a warning than a full fight.
  • The incident supposedly happened in front of Herro’s AAU team, which made it even more awkward.

Summer League standouts

  • Caleb Wilson got a lot of praise.
  • They also talked up the usual Summer League phenomenon where every promising rookie looks like a future star.

LeBron watch

  • The hosts joked that LeBron should announce his next move on a dead-news day.
  • They speculated about a possible video announcement or dramatic reveal.

MLB All-Star Break and Baseball Notes

All-Star Game context

  • The All-Star break was described as the start of the “dead zone.”
  • They talked about the Cubs and Phillies having strong records but not leading their divisions.

Stat nugget

  • The show highlighted a fun stat about pitchers starting the All-Star Game for their teams for the first time in years.

Home run derby fun

  • They enjoyed seeing legends like Ryan Howard and Jose Canseco hitting bombs in special events.
  • The segment turned into a funny debate about where home plate actually was placed in one of the videos.

Dingers Only update

  • They briefly checked in on the Dingers Only standings, with Max apparently in last place.

Other Sports and Random Bits

Tennis

  • Jannik Sinner won Wimbledon, but the crew joked it didn’t fully count because Carlos Alcaraz wasn’t in the moment.
  • They largely treated tennis as something to fast-forward to the finals.

College/football future

  • They discussed the Madden 99 Club leak and generally approved of the names, with some debate over Trey McBride and Matthew Stafford.

Mount Rushmore: Guys You Want to See Ride a Horse

This was a chaotic and very funny draft. The prompt evolved from “people” to “guys,” with the crew joking that it would otherwise become a “big tits” competition.

Notable picks and candidates

  • Guy Fieri
  • Donald Trump
  • Yao Ming
  • Jameis Winston
  • Shaquille O’Neal
  • Stephen Hawking
  • Wemby
  • Danny DeVito
  • Coach O
  • Larry David
  • Big Dom
  • Frank the Tank

Biggest takeaway

  • Andy Reid was repeatedly mentioned as an obvious omission and the pick everyone regretted not taking.
  • The draft ended up being more about funny visualizations than strict logic, which made it work.

Notable Quotes and Moments

  • Romo on criticism: he’s fine with the hosts talking trash as long as it stays fun.
  • Romo on football: the game is simpler than people think; success comes from understanding leverage, numbers, and timing.
  • Romo on leadership: a quarterback doesn’t have to be the loudest guy, but he does have to know the game and put his body on the line.
  • The crew’s recurring joke about Romo’s “Here we go, Jim” cadence remained a running gag throughout.

Bottom Line

This episode is a strong mix of:

  • a genuinely great Tony Romo interview,
  • a messy but entertaining recap of the sports weekend,
  • and one of the more absurd Mount Rushmores in recent memory.

If you want one episode to catch up on the sports conversation of the week, this is a good one.