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Seth Wickersham, ESPN Senior WriterAug 29, 2024, 12:38 PM ET
- Senior Writer for ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine
- Joined ESPN The Magazine after graduating from the University of Missouri.
- Although he primarily covers the NFL, his assignments also have taken him to the Athens Olympics, the World Series, the NCAA tournament and the NHL and NBA playoffs.
While Tom Brady’s approval as a partial owner of the Las Vegas Raiders is pending, he will be forced to abide by unique and severe restrictions in his dual role as a Fox broadcaster, the league announced Thursday.
Brady is not permitted to be in another team’s facility, is not permitted to witness practice and is not permitted to attend broadcast production meetings, either in person or virtually. The lack of access to coaches and players before games could be the most severe restriction; those meetings, at which a broadcast crew meets with the matchup’s head coaches and key players, are often a lifeblood of insight for the telecast.
These rules, which the league presented to owners Tuesday at the NFL meetings in Eagan, Minnesota, on a slide titled “Brady — Broadcast Restrictions,” affects only the seven-time Super Bowl champion and would not apply to other members of Fox crews. A league source told ESPN that owners had raised several questions about conflicts of interest in Brady’s potential role.
Aside from the access restrictions, Brady is subject to other applicable league policies common to other owners.
• He is prohibited from publicly criticizing game officials and other clubs. While Brady could, in theory, state that he disagrees with a call on air, he is subject to fines or even a suspension if he goes too far.
• He is subject to the league’s gambling policy.
• He is subject to the league’s anti-tampering policies. He is permitted only “strictly social communication with members of other clubs,” according to the slide that the league presented.
There is a precedent for these rules, league spokesperson Brian McCarthy told ESPN Tuesday. In 2017, Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen called some games for Fox, including one against the Minnesota Vikings. Because the Vikings were an upcoming opponent of the Panthers, Olsen wasn’t given usual broadcast crew access. Olsen has worked on Fox’s top broadcast team since retirement. Brady, 47, is due to replace him on that crew this year.
Representatives for Fox and the Raiders didn’t respond to ESPN’s requests for comments.
These rules might further complicate Brady’s bid to become a limited partner of the Raiders. The deal still has not been finalized, more than a year after ESPN first reported he was in advanced discussions to be a partial owner and, shortly after, that he had agreed to buy a stake in the team. The ownership stake could be approved in October’s league meetings in Atlanta.
Owners and league executives have had questions about the selling price of his proposed 10% stake — the Washington Post reported in March that the discounted rate that Brady was due to receive concerned owners — and about the conflicts of interest as a color analyst on a broadcast partner’s top television team.
His bid has been stuck in the league’s finance committee. If it clears the committee, Brady’s ownership stake must be approved by at least 24 of 32 owners.
Before what turned out to be Brady’s final NFL season in 2022, the all-time great agreed to a 10-year, $375 million contract to join Fox as an analyst once his playing career was over. He retired in 2023 and agreed to begin at Fox for the 2024 season.
