Fox’s NFL team pushed around many moving pieces to get Tom Brady as its lead color analyst. And after giving the legendary ex-quarterback nearly $400 million over 10 years to call games, Fox is just going to have to be patient with him. Mistakes, nervousness, and all.
We saw this as much during Brady’s announcing debut while calling the Dallas Cowboys’ matchup with the Cleveland Browns in Week 1.
While there’s no denying Brady’s vast wealth of football knowledge and acumen, he sounded nervous. Like an uncharacteristic type of nervous. So much so that his stilted, slow sentence structure became more distracting than the actual game. I also say “uncharacteristic” because we’re talking about a guy with nerves of steel who won so many big games over an illustrious NFL career.
Brady’s arguably the greatest football player of all time!
Now, he’s probably (and understandably?) nervous about announcing a game? It’s just strange to process at the moment, as you’ll note his stilted, over-rehearsed delivery in the clip below:
Tom Brady breaks down what Dak Prescott saw at the line of scrimmage before his touchdown pass to Brandin Cooks
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/ZKwFPddjYa
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 8, 2024
Yeah, that doesn’t sound too special or composed for a dude who received almost half a billion dollars to do this specific job.
Fortunately for Brady, it’s only Week 1, and he’s still learning the ropes. Give him patience. If he’s the Brady we all know quite well, it should only be a matter of time before he becomes a beloved, gifted commentator. Practice makes perfect, after all.
For now, though, hearing this man sound this nervous was quite bizarre. NFL fans agreed about Brady’s Week 1 announcing performance.
Maybe someone should have listened to Tom Brady actually say words before dropping $300 million on him.
— Jonathan Smith (@DegenerateTBone) September 8, 2024
Tom Brady is absolutely atrocious in the booth
— NYJ Matt (@NYJ_Matt) September 8, 2024
FOX paid Tom Brady $375 million to say insights like “negative plays keep you from scoring”
— JaguarGator9 (@JaguarGator9NFL) September 8, 2024
I think Tom Brady will turn into a really good announcer, but a couple of minutes into this game he sounds nervous and unsure of when & how he fits in.
— Joe DeCamara (@JoeDeCamara) September 8, 2024
You can feel Tom Brady’s nerves seeping through the screen. Game is running too fast for him to squeeze in all his notes and prep. Odd… staccato… delivery to… his… sentences. He’ll settle down and be good!
— Ollie Connolly (@OllieConnolly) September 8, 2024
I don’t know if Tom Brady will end up being a bad broadcaster, but it’s jarring how nervous he sounds today
— Andrew Joseph (@AndyJ0seph) September 8, 2024
Tom Brady in the booth now. I’m sure he’ll be fine/good, but it’s hard to think he’ll be better than the demoted Greg Olsen.
Olsen just put on a masterclass in the No. 2 booth for PIT-ATL
— Ben Fischer (@BenFischerSBJ) September 8, 2024
