Throughout his first season at Fox, countless media members have relentlessly picked apart Tom Brady’s on-air performance.
However, in the eyes of longtime NFL and NBA broadcaster Mark Champion, the criticisms are more because of Brady’s success in the NFL than his shortcomings as a broadcaster.
It was quite easy to assume that someone like Brady, who has had success at the highest level in the NFL, would be a natural when it came to broadcasting. But as we saw with Drew Brees at NBC, experience and knowledge of the game do not always guarantee immediate success in the broadcast booth.
During the Week 6 matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and the Detroit Lions on Fox, which Brady was on the call for, Mark Champion took to social media to denounce those criticizing Brady, saying it “takes time” to be a good NFL game analyst.
“I don’t understand the criticism of Brady,” wrote Champion. “He’s not Brady the best QB ever. He’s trying to be a good analyst. Takes time. Don’t know if he stays when he becomes part owner of the Raiders.”
I don’t understand the criticism of Brady. He’s not Brady the best QB ever. He’s trying to be a good analyst.
Takes time. Don’t know if he stays when he becomes part owner of the Raiders— Mark Champion (@nbamark) October 13, 2024
Champion knows better than anyone that years of experience lends itself to a comfortability in the booth that Brady seemingly doesn’t quite have yet.
He started his career as the radio play-by-play announcer for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 1979-1988 before moving to Detroit to serve in the same role from 1989-2004.
He remains the radio play-by-play voice of the Detroit Pistons, a position he has held since 2001.
As great as Brady’s NFL playing career was, it may be easy to forget that he wasn’t the Tom Brady we think of now in his first season in New England.
To expect someone like Brady who has six games of experience under his belt to be as natural in the booth as some of his peers is simply unrealistic. Brady is learning on the fly. But he just so happens to be learning on the fly on one of the biggest platforms in all of sports as a part of the No. 1 Fox NFL broadcast team.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.