1 Reason Tom Brady Could Struggle Immensely With Broadcasting

After retiring in early 2023, potential partial Las Vegas Raiders owner Tom Brady will be trying his hand in the booth for his first full season as a broadcaster in 2024.

Brady signed a deal with Fox Sports and was immediately thrust into the No. 1 broadcast group, demoting former Carolina Panther tight end Greg Olsen.

Tom Brady could own a part of the Las Vegas Raiders and it could cause a conflict of interest

Brady is currently seeking approval as a partial owner of the Las Vegas Raiders. As a broadcaster, being a partial owner of the Raiders could have a massive impact on his ability to properly do his job.

According to Seth Wickersham of ESPN, an owners meeting presentation in Minneapolis said that Brady would have to abide by” unique and severe restrictions.”

For example, if Brady were to be approved as a partial owner of the Raiders he would be unable to access practice and production meetings ahead of his broadcast appearances. Asking questions at practice and production meetings are vital aspects of a good sports broadcast as they allow the broadcasters to provide a window into the teams that are playing that fans would otherwise not get to peek through.

Being able to ask questions about schemes or personnel as an impartial reporter wouldn’t only allow Brady to relay that information to the viewers, but it would also allow Brady to use his elite football mind to gain his own insight about what is happening on the field.

When former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo first found his way into the booth, he took the world by storm with his ability to read the defense and predict what the offense was going to do. This would not have been possible if Romo was under the same restrictions Brady could potentially have to abide by.

When Tony Romo was predicting EVERYTHING the Patriots were doing in the AFC Championship 🤯

(via @thecheckdown)pic.twitter.com/tO3EGZSJaa

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 23, 2021

Restrictions on access are just the beginning of Tom Brady’s potential handicaps as a broadcaster

On top of restrictions from team practices and production meetings, Brady will be subject to a myriad of other handicaps about which his fellow broadcasters do not have to worry.

If Brady were to become a partial owner of the Raiders he would be limited in the things he could say as a broadcaster. For example, Brady would not be able to criticize officials just as owners and coaches are unable to do. While there is some subjectivity and leeway, owners and coaches getting fined for criticism of officials is not a rarity in the NFL.

Brady would also have to abide by the league’s gambling policy. Modern-day broadcasts are laden with gambling ads and it is unclear how that would be affected if Brady were on the call.

On top of being held out of practices and production meetings, Brady would only be allowed to have “strictly social communication with members of other clubs.” This would mean he is unable to talk with players about anything regarding the actual game, which is the most important thing to talk about as a color commentator.

Many fans were upset that Brady immediately usurped Greg Olsen, but now that Brady could be severely handicapped as a broadcaster that sentiment could continue to grow. Olsen said in an article from USA Today that the Brady situation will only push him to be a better broadcaster.

“My aspirations are still to be a No. 1 analyst, whether it’s at Fox or elsewhere,” Olsen added. “That will never change as long as I do this. I’m not just content to be there, I’m not just happy to have a seat. I want the top seat, and I want that wherever that opportunity allows and I’ll never stop working for that. I feel more motivated for that now more than ever.”

If Brady is unable to provide the insight of even a middling broadcaster, fans will certainly be quick to judge one of the most controversial players of the modern era. Brady, who is widely considered the best quarterback to ever play football, has an extremely high bar to reach just because of how good and smart he was as a player and this potential handicap will not help him reach that bar.

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