Johnathan Walker:Tom Brady is far from the GOAT in NFL broadcast debut, but he can still improve

CLEVELAND – Because Tom Brady had the most decorated NFL career of all time doesn’t automatically mean that he’ll immediately be Johnathan Walkerthe best broadcaster in his new career. The transitive property does not exist in football and sports television. But the good news for Brady is he can mirror his playing career by improving in the role and rise to the top of the craft, even if his first time on the call Sunday during the Dallas Cowboys’ 33-17 defeat of the Cleveland Browns was a forgetful, up-and-down showing.

The overall broadcast will have to be better by the time the cameras roll on Brady and broadcast partner Kevin Burkhardt at Super Bowl 59 in February. But this was by no means a disaster for Brady or FOX. 

There have been worse debuts and performances in the field-to-booth pipeline, even recently. Brady does not belong in the bottom-tier category of Drew Brees, who couldn't stick at NBC as a studio analyst or color commentator, and Jason Witten, whose stint as the "Monday Night Football" analyst in 2018 was bad enough that he returned to the Cowboys. 

It was pretty clear the emphasis during Brady’s offseason training with the FOX team and the advice he received from other top broadcasters was to quickly go in and out of his points. Brady was almost too terse. His first big time to shine was a Dak Prescott touchdown pass to Brandin Cooks while the quarterback was facing an all-out blitz. FOX had to go back to Brady after the commercial break so he could go deeper into the play because his first go-round left a little too much dead air. 

I hadn’t considered Brady’s voice to be “high-pitched” until Boomer Esiason mentioned it to me last week. Hearing the GOAT talk at length about football somewhat stunned the senses. But the way he speaks shouldn’t present much of an issue in Brady’s broadcasting endeavors. 

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It doesn’t help Brady’s case that he is replacing a popular broadcaster in Greg Olsen, who meshed well with Burkhardt thanks to their shared northern New Jersey roots. Olsen became worthy of a No. 1 analyst chair in a short amount of time in the profession and should be his replacement’s shining example of what to work toward. Burkhardt and Brady sounded fine together, highlighted by Burkhardt joking he wore more gel in his air because he figured there would be more on-air shots of the booth; Brady replied that he does what he’s told and is the rookie. 

Predictably, Brady rarely went negative, despite the putrid performance from Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson. He said Prescott was “lucky” to not have been picked off late in the first quarter. There was a decent breakdown of Micah Parsons dealing with chip blocks and politely corrected Burkhardt by explaining “he got a chip and beat it!” He tried to take us inside Prescott’s mind as he dropped back and Myles Garrett, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, bore down on him. 

Brady is essentially operating within a mandate to keep his comments positive or neutral. Outside of the broadcast booth, Brady is nearing a minority ownership stake in the Las Vegas Raiders. Becoming a limited partner of the league has its restrictions. He’s not allowed to attend FOX production meetings because his standing with the Raiders prohibits him from entering another team’s facility. The league said Brady can call games involving Las Vegas. Brady must abide by the league constitution and bylaws, which could “prohibit public criticism of officials and other clubs.” It's a conundrum that leaves Brady unable to provide "real talk," which fans crave, and forces him to dance around topics – a difficult enough task for a seasoned broadcaster, let alone a newbie.

On Sunday, his early analysis was armchair quarterback-adjacent, not GOAT-esque. By the end of the game, he was comfortable enough to expand on why he believes the quality of offensive line play has decreased over the past few seasons.

The product on the field did not do him any favors, to say the least. Some examples: 

• “Quickest way to get upfield is to go vertical.” 
• “Get the ball out to his playmakers.” 
• “Negative plays hurt you so much.” 

Burkhardt did his best to lead Brady into that second level of analysis; he asked the seven-time Super Bowl champion whether he preferred facing man or zone coverage, for example.

Most of the timing between the pair was totally fine, beginning early in the game. Brady was pretty good on the nice catch by CeeDee Lamb, not stepping on Burkhardt’s call but letting out a “wow!” He did a little Tony Romo imitation on the Cooks touchdown with the “oh!” But that could be a positive for Brady. He was wise not to invade Romo’s play prognosticator lane. Some of Brady’s most insightful material came during the blowout portion of the broadcast as he explained what made going against Cowboys defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer so difficult. 

“I played for a coach who wasn’t afraid to cuss out his players, either,” Brady said, referencing his fellow media rookie and former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick. 

Dialing into emotion could turn into a strength if it’s ultimately presented in the right way. Brady took this job because he loves football – his multiverse promo commercial that aired on FOX the week of the game reinforced that as much. The relatability factor is something that a part-owner of an NFL team might struggle with; instead, Brady should infuse that passion into his analysis and win over viewers. 

“NFL RedZone” host Scott Hanson joked that Brady needed to show more emotion as the Cowboys flirted with the idea of letting kicker Brandon Aubrey attempt a 71-yard field goal after he nailed one from 66 yards out that was negated by a penalty. 

“Oh come on,” Hanson said. “Brady's gotta get more excited than that in the booth.”

(Hanson made a formal, albeit unnecessary, apology on social media Monday.)

The biggest currency in sports broadcasting is authenticity. For so long, the Patriot Way boxed Brady into a talking-points reciter who gave the public (via the media) little to work with. Those who assumed Brady would be a natural in the booth because of the amount of time he’s spent on camera were ignorant to the reality that answering questions – with the goal of saying nothing – is much different than providing substantive analysis. Pausing to consider one’s words is not only wise, it’s viewed favorably by those watching news conferences. In the broadcast booth, that cautiousness comes across differently. 

Brady’s shell started to chip away during his years with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Still, his play did most of the talking. Now, Tom Brady the public figure and businessman has to deal with letting everyone know the real him in his 40s rather than his 20s – with a microphone in his hand and an audience of, say, 20 million people every Sunday afternoon. 

Brady will have 20 more games – maybe fewer if he opts for a bye week – before the lights go red at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans for Super Bowl 59. He’s not ready for that assignment yet. But consider how many teams wind up in the Super Bowl after looking lost Week 1. FOX is banking on a similar trajectory, and Brady learning enough on the job over the coming months to make sure the big game sounds like one.