Tom Brady makes FOX broadcasting debut during UFL championship game
Scott Rovak/UFL/Getty Images
Tom Brady has officially returned to football...but in a new role.
The future Hall of Fame quarterback is now a rookie analyst, having officially made his debut in the FOX broadcast booth during Sunday's United Football League championship game.
Brady, who will become the network's lead NFL analyst when the season begins in September, joined the broadcast during the second quarter of the scoreless game between the Birmingham Stallions and San Antonio Brahmas in St. Louis.
"Bring in a little instant offense, you know him, you love him, Tom Brady..." play-by-play announcer Curt Menefee said while welcoming Brady to the booth.
"I can't go down there on the field anymore, what are you talking about," said Brady, wearing a suit and headset.
Hey, @TomBrady 👋
The 🐐 made his @FOXSports booth debut at the @TheUFL Championship 🎙️
Can’t wait to see more of this in the fall 🏈pic.twitter.com/Uzgenfm3PJ
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) June 16, 2024
The seven-time Super Bowl champion, who was inducted into the New England Patriots Hall of Fame on Wednesday, offered some advice to the struggling offenses competing in the game during his first segment.
"Someone's gotta get the ball down the field and try to open this field up a little bit," he said. "It's a lot of horizontal passes, and the defenses are swarming and trying to punch the ball out. So, make them defend every blade of glass, that's what we used to say."
Brady, 46, reportedly reached a 10-year, $375 million deal with FOX in 2022 before opting to return for one final season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He will partner with play-by-play commentator Kevin Burkhardt, supplanting former tight end and lead analyst Greg Olsen.
Brady is set to make his NFL regular-season broadcasting debut on Sept. 8 when the Cleveland Browns host the Dallas Cowboys.
He got his first warm-up Sunday while joining Menefee and analyst Joel Klatt during the UFL matchup. Brady later appeared on stage after the Stallions' 25-0 win to present the MVP award to quarterback Adrian Martinez.
The 🐐 @TomBrady presents Adrian Martinez the UFL Championship MVP Trophy 🏆 pic.twitter.com/fU4g7MLhIu
— United Football League (@TheUFL) June 17, 2024
Brady discussed his second career during an upcoming interview on NFL Network's "The Insiders."
"I've got a lot of things I've learned through playing football that are going to allow me to hopefully convey really unique things to the listeners every single week, but at the same time, there's going to be a lot of growth that I'm going to have over a period of time, too," Brady said. "So, coming out of the box, I want to do well, but I also know that I'm not a finished product, that I'm going to make plenty of mistakes, but I'm going to learn as I go."
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