Tom Brady remains a work-in-progress as an NFL broadcaster, but he is undoubtedly an all-time great quarterback.
The Fox broadcaster is preparing to call his first Super Bowl on Sunday. He’ll be able to provide expert commentary about what the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles are dealing with because he’d been there ten times as a player, winning seven championships.
Brady stopped by The Herd on Friday to preview the big game. While there, host Colin Cowherd asked the GOAT questions about how he prepared for these kinds of situations. Then, Cowherd sat back and let Brady explain everything that went into it. It was a masterclass in understanding what separates a great quarterback from an all-time great quarterback.
This is an incredible 4 minutes by Tom Brady. Say what you want about him as an analyst, but he’s so much more comfy and informative in these settings. His emphasis on being prepared for the moment always comes through. pic.twitter.com/zFnPvJm3k9
— Steve Perrault (@Steve_Perrault) February 8, 2025
“My last year, my last Super Bowl I was a part of, I was two weeks of watching film. Friday night, I was just going through the film. I knew Kansas City’s defense better than they knew themselves. I knew their body movements, the way their linebackers move, the way their safety’s moved. Tyrann Mathieu, Nick Sorensen, Charvarius Ward. I knew everything they were doing. I got out there on the field, I looked up as I was walking the line of scrimmage, I said, ‘Okay, they’re blitzing.’ And then I was dealing with it right away. I walked up, I said, ‘Okay, they’re going to bail to Cover Two.’ Ball snapped, Cover Two. I had the answers to the test.
“That’s where I was great. That’s where my magic superpower was. It wasn’t how fast I could run. It was how fast I could diagnose what they were doing. What’s the special quality? What’s the internet speed of me as a quarterback? Fast as sh*t. I was Starlink before Starlink. Now, other guys, if it’s a slow processing speed, well, he’s going to getcha. The reality is I could figure out what they were doing before they did it because that’s how I learned to play the game.
“That’s how I believe most quarterbacks should play the game. Unfortunately, as we’ve talked about, most quarterbacks aren’t playing the game like that anymore. They’re fast when they get out of the pocket, when they have to make decisions. But I didn’t snap the ball unless I knew what they were doing and if my guy is gonna be open.
“The one benefit you have as a quarterback, before you snap the ball, you know where everybody on your team is running. If you have five eligibles out in the route, I know where all five are going. If I look at the defense and I say, ‘None of my guys are going to be open based on this coverage, we didn’t design the play for this coverage,’ I don’t need to snap the ball. I can run something different. I can check to a run, I can check to a screen, I can signal a receiver and change a route. Then I would just change the route to a route that I thought would be open. I’d catch the ball, I’d throw it, and it’d be a 15-yard gain. Everyone would be like, ‘God, it looks so easy.’ I’m like, Well, yeah, it’s easy because you’re not paying attention to the right thing.
“What’s going on in [my head] is what my superpower was. That was Peyton Manning’s superpower. That was Drew Brees’ superpower. Those were the guys that I tried to be like. That’s what we did a great job of. That part of the game is what I am really fascinated by. When I see players play like that, those are the guys that I think have the most upside.”
Go watch the whole appearance because it’s not only a great discussion about playing quarterback, playing in the NFL, and playing in the Super Bowl, but it’s also a picture of the perfect version of Broadcaster Tom Brady. Sure, maybe he can’t drop s-bombs on Fox during nationally televised games, but this loose, affable, cocky (in a good way) version of Brady is what audiences have been craving since his wooden debut. This is the version of him that you want to hang out with while he regales you with stories. He’s certainly gotten better as the season went on, but if he can find a way to keep bringing THIS guy into the booth, it’s going to be a real game-changer for the way he’s considered when calling games.
We’ll see if we can get a little bit more of Tom Brady when he joins Kevin Burkhardt in the Fox booth on Sunday for Super Bowl LIX, which kicks off at 6:30 p.m. ET.
