Tom Brady’s response: After former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was recently spotted wearing a headset in the Raiders’ coaching box during a Monday night loss to the Chargers on Sept. 15, questions were quickly asked about a possible conflict of interest.
Brady, 48, is now somehow more involved in the game now that he’s retired from playing. He’s simultaneously a minority owner in the Raiders while also working as the color commentator as part of Fox Sports’ lead NFL broadcast partnership (alongside Kevin Burkhardt).
Because broadcasters get special access to teams and limited levels of behind-closed-doors information (in pre-game production meetings), accusations have been made that Brady could theoretically leverage that insider knowledge for the benefit of the team he has a stake in. Brady, for example, had the call of the Bears-Cowboys game on Sunday in advance of Las Vegas’ impending matchup with Chicago this weekend.
While no specific accusations have been made against Brady, the concept of his dual role has been called a “slippery slope” by Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer (and questioned by many others).
In response, Brady took to his weekly newsletter, “199.” He began by referencing what he called a “period of great paranoia and distrust.”
“We are living through a period of great paranoia and distrust. In politics, media, sports, business, and especially wherever those worlds intersect,” Brady said, a clear nod to his own status as owner and broadcaster.
He invoked the words of his former coach, Bill Belichick, as an answer to the ongoing ethical concerns.
“I believe all of us know that there’s at least one solution: duty and integrity. Doing our jobs to the best of our abilities, consistent with our values,” wrote Brady. “So this week, that’s what I want to talk about: duty and integrity. Doing your job the right way.”
The ex-quarterback walked readers through his current status, noting his equal commitments to both broadcasting and the Raiders.
“As a broadcaster, I want everyone who tunes into FOX on Sunday afternoons to feel like they got their money’s worth for the three hours they entrust to our entire team,” Brady began.
Regarding the Raiders, he was equally adamant about his passion.
“I have a deep desire to help refresh and reinvigorate the culture of a franchise with cherished traditions and a long, storied history in professional football.”
But where skeptics see the intersection of Brady’s two current football interests as a conflict, the seven-time Super Bowl winner insisted that it’s actually the opposite.
“I love football. At its core it is a game of principles. And with all the success it has given me, I feel I have a moral and ethical duty to the sport; which is why the point where my roles in it intersect is not actually a point of conflict, despite what the paranoid and distrustful might believe,” said Brady. “Rather, it’s the place from which my ethical duty emerges: to grow, evolve, and improve the game that has given me everything.”
Turning to those who have questioned his role (Brady did not specifically identify anyone), he again offered an indirect reference to the perceived conflict of interest with the Raiders and his broadcasting career.
“When you live through uncertain and untrusting times like we are today, it is very easy to watch a person’s passions and profession intersect, and to believe you’re looking at some sort of dilemma,” he wrote. “Because when you’re blinded by distrust, it’s hard to see anything other than self-interest.”
“People who are like that, particularly to a chronic, pathological degree, are telling on themselves,” Brady continued. “They’re showing you their worldview and how they operate. They’re admitting that they can only conceive of interests that are selfish; that they cannot imagine a person doing their job for reasons that are greater than themselves. (These kinds of people make horrible teammates, by the way.)”
Again avoiding any references to specific critics, Brady acknowledged that he doesn’t expect to get the “benefit of the doubt.”
“You can always hope for the benefit of the doubt, but you can never expect or demand it,” he said. “The problem is, there’s a strange phenomenon that occurs when people judge the motivations of others or the meanings of things that they don’t fully understand. They fill their gap in knowledge with worst-case scenario thinking and negative assumptions. There is rarely any benefit of the doubt.”
The NFL continues to bar Brady from stepping foot inside other teams’ facilities or attending production meetings in person. However, it relaxed earlier rules ahead of the 2025 season to allow the longtime QB to attend production meetings via zoom. Following the recent Raiders game in which he was seen in the coaching box, the league officially cleared him of wrongdoing.
“There are no policies that prohibit an owner from sitting in the coaches’ booth or wearing a headset during a game,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said, via ESPN. “Brady was sitting in the booth in his capacity as a limited partner.”
Trivia: John Madden owns the record for most wins as head coach of the Raiders (103). Can you name the person who is second on that list?
(Answer at the bottom).
Hint: He won twice as many Super Bowls as head coach of the Raiders as Madden did.
Scores and schedules:
The Red Sox defeated Blue Jays 4-1 on Tuesday. The two teams play again this evening at 7:07 p.m. Boston currently holds possession of the second wild-card spot, leading the Tigers by a game.
This Sunday, the Patriots host the Panthers at 1 p.m.
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‘Let me break this down’: J.J. Watt embraced embarrassing on-air moment, thanked Patriots fans
An interview with Jayson Tatum: The Celtics’ star spoke to ESPN’s Malika Andrews to discuss his potential injury return timeline.
On this day: In 1978, the Patriots rallied to defeat the Raiders 21-14, with Sam Cunningham scoring the winning touchdown with just six seconds remaining.
Daily highlight: Ryan Fitzgerald pulled off an incredible swim move to get back to the bag on the Rangers’ attempted pickoff at second base.
Trivia answer: Tom Flores