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We here at Awful Announcing will be the first to admit that we think it’s weird that Tom Brady gets to call NFL games and gain access to teams, coaches, and players across the league while also being a very hands-on owner of one of them.
We’ve been pretty adamant on that front, even in the face of all the eyerolls and deep sighs we heard from many of our colleagues in the sports media world.
That was all before this past Monday night, when Brady, Fox’s lead NFL analyst, was seen in the Las Vegas coaching booth wearing a headset while ESPN’s Peter Schrager shared that Raiders OC Chip Kelly “talks to Brady two to three times a week” and that “they go through film, they go through the gameplan.”
That unleashed a tidal wave of fresh reactions (including ours) questioning how the NFL could possibly be okay with this (which they are, using the “there’s nothing in the rulebook that says a dog can’t play basketball” excuse).
The takes were intense. Marcus Spears called it “abhorrent.” Boomer Esiason said it was “complete and utter B.S.” Stephen A. Smith encouraged NFL teams to lie to him during production meetings. There was an equally strong backlash to the backlash, as people like Bill Simmons and Dan Orlovsky don’t think this dual role benefits Brady and the Raiders all that much.
Do we think Tom Brady would use inside information he gleaned from his Fox role to benefit the Raiders if he could? Absolutely. He’s a ruthless competitor whose desire to win at all costs has followed him into team ownership. He also recently made clear where he’s willing to bend ethical lines.
Do we think Tom Brady is likely to benefit in any meaningful way from the information he gets during production meetings and interviews? Probably not. About the best he can hope for is building rapport with players and coaches he might one day want to sign. Sure, it sounds like tampering, but who’s gonna stop him?
While many pundits get caught up in the logistics of the situation, the real reason this rubs many people the wrong way has nothing to do with production meetings, Chip Kelly hangouts, or coaching booth headsets.
We find ourselves in an era where there’s a particular stratum of individuals who act as though they are above reproach and devoid of any responsibility beyond enriching themselves, regardless of the cost paid by the rest of us. We live in a world where billionaires and certain politicians make decisions based on whims or grudges and never seem to have to deal with any fallout or pushback. This isn’t a new phenomenon by any stretch, but there’s an intensity to it right now that feels inescapable.
Tom Brady is part of that group. Rich. Elite. Unbothered by the daily machinations of the world. Constantly in our faces with a new role, venture, endeavor, or event. Continually finding new ways to enrich himself, even though he doesn’t need any more money. Consistently dropping bon mots about grit and tenacity and perseverance while shaking hands with oil tycoons and Saudi princes.
Back when Brady was a player and he’d go away every offseason, we could recalibrate. You could appreciate all of the things that made him so successful without feeling smothered by it. Now, there’s no escape. And there are seemingly no rules for him as he moves from the NFL booth to the locker room to the coaches’ box to the owners’ box to the private jet to the corporate headquarters and back around again.
It’s annoying, to put it simply. He’s annoying. And that’s ultimately what all of this sturm und drang over is about. There’s just too much Tom Brady these days. And every time we see that the NFL, THE FREAKIN’ NFL, arguably the one entity in America that doesn’t need to bend for anyone or anything, consistently bends for him, it feels a little ridiculous while reminding us how things work around here these days.
And all of this for a guy who is just mediocre at his job. This truly is a metaphor for our modern times.
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About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.