By Saloni
Tom Brady may not be the finest broadcaster in his new endeavor just because he had the most accomplished NFL career. Football and sports TV lack transitivity.
Even if his first game as a quarterback was a forgettable, up-and-down performance Sunday against the Cleveland Browns, Brady can improve and reach to the top like he did as a player.
The broadcast must improve before Brady and Kevin Burkhardt appear at Super Bowl 59 in February. Not a disaster for Brady or FOX.
Even recent field-to-booth pipeline debuts and performances have been worse. Brady is not like Drew Brees, who couldn't stay at NBC as a studio analyst or color commentator, or Jason Witten, who left "Monday Night Football" in 2018 due to poor performance.
Brady's offseason training with FOX and coaching from other top announcers emphasized efficiently transitioning between points. Brady almost spoke too briefly.
His first big moment was a Dak Prescott touchdown ball to Brandin Cooks during a full-on blitz. FOX had to go back to Brady after the commercial break to deepen the play because his first attempt left too much dead air.
Boomer Esiason called Brady's voice “high-pitched” last week. Hearing the GOAT discuss football was shocking. Brady shouldn't have any trouble transmitting due to his speech.
Brady is replacing Greg Olsen, a famous broadcaster who got along with Burkhardt due to their northern New Jersey roots. Olsen rose to the top analyst chair quickly and should serve as a model for his successor.