Fox exec calls Brady rumors “a never-ending, merry-go-round” of narratives

Even as Tom Brady goes through his first postseason and prepares to call his first Super Bowl as a television analyst in three weeks, rumors about his future continue to be rampant, much to the dismay of Fox Sports.

Fox Sports president of production and operations/executive producer Brad Zager understands the spotlight Brady and the network are under. Still, Zager said Brady is in it for the long haul.

"The whole group that said he would never be there then turned into, he's not going to stay there. It's just a never-ending, merry-go-round of people trying to come up with the next narrative," Zager said in a phone interview with The Associated Press on Friday. "Tom has done nothing but be engaged with us every time he's asked about broadcasting. When he was retired and getting in, getting ready, he talked about how excited he was for it, that he was 100% and has never wavered on that. So the fact that there are people on that crew that have to read articles and narratives and predictions that Tom isn't engaged does wear on you,"

Friday's comments by Zager are the first about Brady by someone from Fox Sports. Brady has not been made available for media interviews this season. He has discussed his first season in the booth during appearances on Colin Cowherd's show on FS1.

On Thursday, Don Yee, Brady's agent, told Sports Business Journal that Brady "has had a tremendous amount of fun working with Fox this year, and he's really excited about the future with Fox." Brady signed a 10-year, $375 million contract with Fox in May 2022 while still playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He retired after that season and decided in February 2023 to take a year off before moving into the booth.

"Tom has had a tremendous amount of fun working with Fox this year, and he's excited about the future with Fox and his growth on their team," Yee said. "And this year was the first year of a long relationship."

Yee did not return an email or text message by The Associated Press seeking comment.

Fox Sports has tried to weather the rumors and criticism surrounding Brady's future and his dual roles as the analyst on its NFL crew and being a minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Everything has come to a head this week with Brady and Kevin Burkhardt calling Saturday night's NFC divisional round game in Detroit between the Lions and the Washington Commanders.

Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn are candidates for the Raiders’ head coach opening. Brady is involved in the franchise's coach and general manager selection.

Brady cannot participate in Fox's production meetings with teams - either in person or via Zoom - watch practices, or step foot in a team's training complex. The only team complex Brady is allowed in is the Raiders.

The league put those parameters in place going into the season after Brady purchased a 5% stake in the Raiders in May 2023. NFL owners approved the purchase last October.

Zager said any inferences about a potential conflict of interest between Brady calling the game and being part of the Raiders' decision-making process are unfounded.

"It's questioning his professionalism and integrity. It's ridiculous," Zager said.

Any questions Brady would have for the coordinators or head coach Dan Campbell could be asked by Burkhardt or a member of the Fox crew in the production meetings. However, Brady receives the same film and statistical information as everyone else on the crew.

"Anytime you're around crew members and doing something as a crew, that's a good thing for the crew. So, we've have to overcome that. You're not going to have that time to bond," Zager said. "But when it comes to analyzing the game and learning information, what is available at the fingertips of the average fan now is probably light years ahead of what was available even to the broadcast crew 15-20 years ago. Not being in the meetings has not stopped him from growing as an analyst throughout the season."

Brady's analysis of teams and officiating is subject to more scrutiny by the league because of his stake in the Raiders, but it would have to be egregiously critical or call into question the integrity of a team or referee.

Zager pointed out that Brady has been critical of play calls or strategy, just like any analyst is expected to do.

"It's been awesome to watch Tom jump into this, having no broadcast experience, and calling the NFL's biggest games. He continues to find his rhythm and those spots where he can really shine during a game," Zager said. "I think he's hitting a great stride as we head to the postseason in our biggest games. And I'm looking forward to these next three games, which are three biggest games, and what he's going to add to the broadcast."

Attention and rumors about Fox's top NFL crew are nothing new. Troy Aikman and Joe Buck's future during the 2021 season was constant fodder before both moved to ESPN's "Monday Night Football." When Brady would join Fox then dominated the 2022 and '23 seasons. Brady, though, did take a lot of pressure off the network before Super Bowl 57 in 2023 when he said early in the week leading up to the game that he wouldn't be joining Fox in 2023, which allowed Greg Olsen to answer questions about the game instead of his future and not be a one-year, lame duck analyst on a top network team.