Tom Brady hits back at critics of his dual career as TV analyst and NFL team owner, calling them ‘paranoid and distrustful’

By Ben Morse, CNN

(CNN) — Tom Brady has hit back at criticism of his dual career as a TV analyst and an NFL team owner, saying those who have reproached him are “paranoid and distrustful.”

Since retiring from playing in 2023, Brady has become the lead analyst for Fox Sports’ NFL coverage as well as a minority share owner of the Las Vegas.

The collision of these two worlds has presented problems for both Brady and the league. Brady’s access during pre-game production meetings with players and coaches had been limited to ensure the former quarterback was unable to – wittingly or unwittingly – feed information on how teams are going to play or details from their playbook back to the Raiders. Those have been loosened this year, allowing him to attend production meetings remotely.

The complex arrangement came to a head this season when Brady was shown on ESPN’s coverage of the Raiders’ Week 2 game against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday, sitting with the Las Vegas coaching staff in the stands of Allegiant Stadium with a headset on, allowing him to hear communications between coaches.

That led to criticism from some quarters that he could divulge what he’s learned as an analyst to the Raiders coaching staff.

Writing in his weekly newsletter “The 199,” which was published on Wednesday, Brady took the opportunity to address concerns people might have about his potentially conflicting interests.

“I love football. At its core it is a game of principles,” the 48-year-old wrote. “And with all the success it has given me, I feel I have a moral and ethical duty to the sport; which is why the point where my roles in it intersect is not actually a point of conflict, despite what the paranoid and distrustful might believe.

“Rather, it’s the place from which my ethical duty emerges: to grow, evolve, and improve the game that has given me everything.”

An NFL spokesperson previously told CNN Sports that Brady was sitting with the Las Vegas coaches in his role as a limited partner and that the league has “no policies” on restricting an owner’s access to the coaches’ booth or wearing a headset during a game.

Brady isn’t the only NFL owner to wear a headset during a game, with Indianapolis Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon seen marching the touchline of Colts games with a headset and a playbook.

Seven-time Super Bowl winner Brady said he believes the criticism directed at him is a reflection of the current world we live in.

“When you live through uncertain and untrusting times like we are today, it is very easy to watch a person’s passions and profession intersect, and to believe you’re looking at some sort of dilemma,” he said. “Because when you’re blinded by distrust, it’s hard to see anything other than self-interest.

“People who are like that, particularly to a chronic, pathological degree, are telling on themselves. They’re showing you their worldview and how they operate. They’re admitting that they can only conceive of interests that are selfish; that they cannot imagine a person doing their job for reasons that are greater than themselves. (These kinds of people make horrible teammates, by the way.)”

Last Sunday, Brady was in the booth to call the Chicago Bears’ victory over the Dallas Cowboys. During the week prior, his job as an analyst gave him an opportunity to interview coaches and players involved in the game.

The Raiders face the Bears in Week 4, but Chicago head coach Ben Johnson said he wasn’t worried about Brady potentially divulging details back to the Las Vegas coaching staff.

“I mean, we change week-to-week in terms of what we do schematically. He’s going to be able to turn on the tape and see what everyone else in the world is seeing right now. Personnel wise, it’s really the same thing,” Johnson said before Week 3 when asked about Brady being in production meetings.

“It’s not like I’m going to sit down with him and tell him: ‘Hey, don’t do this to (quarterback) Caleb Williams or you might get him.’ There’s not going to be any trade secrets that are going to be exchanged. I really don’t think it’s that big of a deal, to be honest with you.”

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2025 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.