NFL executives reportedly have mixed feelings about Las Vegas Raiders minority owner Tom Brady sitting in on production meetings with other teams ahead of his broadcasts on Fox.
Per The Athletic’s Diana Russini, executives are “split” on whether or not its fair for Brady to possibly get intel on other teams while having stake in another.
“I feel like I’ve gotten a pretty good split call on it,” Russini said on the Scoop City podcast (14:15 mark). “There are some teams who are like, ‘I do not care.’ Like literally that was the text back; ‘I do not care, we do not care. It does not bother us.'”
Russini added: “I have others who are like, ‘Yeah, it’s a completely unfair advantage.'”
James Palmer, co-host of Scoop City, explained that a production meeting with just the TV crew differs from a typical media session when a coach takes the podium. He said that the advantage to Brady and the Raiders could be a front office advantage more so than a game-planning advantage.
“I think you can figure a lot of things out big picture as opposed to game planning strategy,” he said. “…I think it’s the larger picture. Who’s liked and who’s disliked in the building. Who’s liked and disliked in terms of their usage. All of that, from coaches to players to anything, is a little nugget of information about what the big picture is going on in that organization and how maybe somebody that’s involved in that could impact the way the Raiders operate.”
Brady, whose minority ownership stake in the Raiders was approved last October, was initially given more restrictions than a typical broadcaster, but relaxed some of those restrictions ahead of the 2025 campaign.
The former star quarterback may attend production meetings with coaches, but must do so remotely. He is also not allowed to attend practices at team facilities.
The recent backlash towards Brady came after he was seen sitting in the coaches’ box during the Raiders’ game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday. The NFL has since said that Brady did not violate any rules by being in the coaches’ box.
ESPN’s Peter Schrager reported during the broadcast of Monday Night Football that Brady meets with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly several times a week to discuss game plans, though head coach Pete Carroll denied that report.
Whether Brady will gain an advantage by being an owner and a broadcaster is up for debate, but his unique position has already led to coaches watching what they say to him.
“I’ve been careful in everything I’ve said since the season started,” Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson said about Brady calling his game. “I’ve been in pure coach-speak mode.”
Brady will be on the call for the Bears’ game against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. Chicago faces Brady and the Raiders the following week.
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