Fox has ‘never gotten an indication’ Tom Brady might not stick with broadcasting

Every week, it feels like Tom Brady has a new investment, bizarre scheme, questionable health product, spokesperson role, or moneymaking venture.

However, no matter how big his personal empire grows in the search for more money, it appears that the one gig he has no plans to waver on is his broadcasting role at Fox Sports.

In a new feature by Richard Deitsch and Austin Karp at Sports Business Journal on the NFL on Fox, Brady’s improvement as a broadcaster from Year 1 to Year 2 is chronicled amid the organization’s broader efforts to deliver the best broadcasts possible.

Brad Zager, Fox Sports’ president and executive producer, was asked whether they’re concerned that Brady’s ownership of the Las Vegas Raiders, plus the 472 other things in his business empire, might eventually take him away from the role despite his signing a 10-year, $375 million contract.

“From the moment we signed Tom, no matter what was written or said, I have never gotten an indication from Tom that he is not into this for the long haul,” Zager told SBJ. “For over a decade, we also heard about [Aikman] possibly taking a front office job. Rumors like that were always out there. You don’t know what the future holds, but I can tell you right now that we have had no discussions with Tom that didn’t involve him being here for a long time.”

Brady himself chided critics as “clickbait” and said his need to prove something is what drives him to want to stay at Fox for the long term.

“I have a lot to prove to myself, to my teammates. I have a lot to prove to the executives,” Brady said. “I want to go earn it, and I don’t want anything given to me. I hope they’ll have me through the end of this contract. I love getting to enjoy the game. I love watching good football. There’s such great camaraderie and chemistry we all have together. We have seminars. We have off-site retreats. We have text threads with all of us. It feels like a big family in so many ways, and I was not really expecting that when I decided to take the job.”

Not having to worry about obvious conflicts of interest certainly helps, too.

By all accounts, and taken at his own words, Brady has made it clear he intends to stay with Fox for the long haul. It’s clear he can handle the grueling schedule alongside the 812 other things he’s got going on. If there’s anything that might one day cause him to consider taking a step back from the booth, it might be the prolonged mediocrity of the Raiders. For now, at least, it’s no problem.