Tom Brady began his unprecedented Hall of Fame NFL career with the most nondescript of rookie seasons. He only appeared in one game for the New England Patriots in 2000, attempting a mere three passes. It was Brady’s second season, of course, when he replaced an injured Drew Bledsoe and won the first of his seven Super Bowls.
So if Brady’s rookie season as a player did so little to tell us what his career would become, then it’s probably unfair to grade Brady’s rookie season as a TV analyst, right?
Um, of course not. And here’s the big difference: While the Patriots didn’t draft Brady until the 199th pick of the NFL Draft and then signed him to a minimal rookie contract, FOX Sports went all in to sign Brady, giving him a 10-year contract worth $375 million.
Not bad for a rookie.
And while Brady didn’t reach the Super Bowl as a player until his second season, Brady the broadcaster will end his rookie campaign calling Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans for FOX.
Admittedly, I haven’t seen much of Brady’s work in the booth. Like many NFL fans, I’m addicted to NFL Red Zone, so (aside from Scott Hanson) I only catch any broadcaster’s work in bits and pieces. A quirky Week 17 schedule, however, gave me the chance to watch Brady’s game from start to finish. Since six games had already been played before Sunday, there were only two games in the late window — with Brady and play-by-play man Kevin Burkhardt calling the game of the week, Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings. It was probably the biggest game Brady has called so far.
So how’d he do?
Brady showed both his strength and weakness before the game even began.
When Brady and Burkhardt appeared on camera just before kickoff, Brady immediately made his first prescient remark. While Sam Darnold’s career renaissance and Justin Jefferson’s greatness are what most fans think of when the Vikings are discussed, Brady called out defensive coordinator Brian Flores — who was with Brady as a Patriots coach from 2008-18 — and Minnesota’s “big-time defense.” Sure enough, the Vikings defense had a dominant first half.
After that, however, Brady tried to get cute and it flopped.
Talking about the Packers, Brady wanted to make the point that they were better than their 11-4 record indicated because their four losses were all to elite teams — the Eagles, the Lions twice and … “Uh, who’d they lose to in the other one?” Brady asked.
Here’s the thing: Brady’s greatest superpower is his preparation. No way he forgot that the Packers’ fourth loss was to the very team they were about to face. Maybe he had a brain lock, but it’s much more likely he was trying to be cute. Problem is, he never delivered the punchline. So if you didn’t know Green Bay lost to Minnesota earlier in the season, it did sound as if Brady forgot. Brady can’t assume viewers knew he was kidding. At least he could have been more exaggerated in his forgetfulness and maybe people would have caught on.
Once the game began, it was mostly standard fare from Brady.
On Green Bay’s second possession, he offered good analysis on how Flores gets the best out of his defense — bringing multiple players up to the line of scrimmage so that opposing quarterbacks and offensive linemen are confused as to which players might be blitzing and which might be dropping back into coverage.
Brady said it confuses the quarterback just enough to make him feel off. Right on cue, Jordan Love’s pass sailed out of reach of an open receiver.
When the Packers faced a fourth-and-3 from the Vikings’ late in the first quarter, it looked like they would go for it. Then Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur changed his mind and brought in the field-goal unit.
“I always loved going on the road and feeling like … even if we didn’t score a touchdown, getting points on the board, settling everything down, playing with a lead,” Brady said. “It just puts a little more pressure on the home team. So I like this call.”
Brady emphasized his philosophy later in the first half when the Packers faced another fourth-and-3 in Minnesota territory. This time, Green Bay went for it and failed.
“Get points on the board,” Brady said. “Don’t inject any adrenaline into the other team.”
Since it wasn’t a second-guess, Brady was justified, when Green Bay pulled to within two late in the game, pointing out that the Packers might be winning had they opted for the field goal on both fourth-and-3’s.
Of course, most viewers might want to hear Brady talk more about himself than the game he’s calling. When Burkhardt teed him up to do so, Brady didn’t back away.
Talking about Vikings running back Aaron Jones, who signed with Minnesota this year after playing his first seven seasons in Green Bay, Burkhardt wondered if Brady appreciated the experience of Jones playing against his former team.
Brady acknowledged you circle that game on the calendar. For Brady, it was Oct. 3, 2021, leading the Bucs to a 19-17 win over the Patriots in New England.
“Why did you let me go? Why’d you let me out of the building?” Brady said — though he didn’t specify whether he was suggesting that was Jones’ question for the Packers or his question for the Patriots.
And there’s the rub… Viewers don’t want to hear Brady merely refer to his playing days. They want more details. There will be 120 million people hanging on Brady’s words when he takes the booth for Super Bowl LIX. Brady has played in 10 Super Bowls, winning seven. The time is now for Brady to open up and share some stories that maybe we’ve never heard.
Chances are there will be more people watching this game than any of the first 10 Super Bowls Brady has been a part of. He might not feel the same pressure as he did when he was in uniform, but there will be just as much praise or criticism of his performance. It will be fascinating to see how the G.O.A.T. handles this one.
