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Tom Brady’s debut as an announcer gets mixed reviews, but he’s glad he’s not ‘sore’
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Tom Brady’s debut as an announcer gets mixed reviews, but he’s glad he’s not ‘sore’

No matter how Sundays go these days, Tom Brady knows his Monday mornings will be fine.

The 47-year-old retired NFL quarterback made his reporting debut Sunday afternoon when he helped his new Fox Sports colleague Kevin Burkhardt cover the Dallas Cowboys’ 33-17 win over the Cleveland Browns.

Brady’s performance was bumpy at times, critics and pundits said. He struggled for words and even belched at one point during the first quarter. But he flashed promising moments at other times, explaining to viewers what it’s like for a quarterback to confront a defensive player who rushes and spotting wide-open receivers that even the quarterbacks missed — a unique perspective that only the five-time Super Bowl MVP could bring to the call.

“I’m learning a lot, believe me,” Brady laughed toward the end of the game when Burkhardt joked about how he had predicted a low-scoring game before the Cowboys’ big win over the Browns.

“Well, Tom Brady even gets it wrong sometimes,” Burkhardt joked. “How about that?”

As the game wound down, Burkhardt told Brady that he and the rest of their teammates are “excited” to have the retired quarterback in the booth with them this season. “We’re off,” he told Brady, asking the seven-time Super Bowl champion how it felt to have the first game under his belt.

“I’ve used my arm and my body for so many years, and now I get to go into a stadium and use my voice,” Brady told him. “Maybe I’ll throw a few passes tomorrow morning, just to remember what it feels like. But like Michael Strahan told me pregame, ‘You’re going to wake up Monday morning and you’re not going to be sore,’ and I’m very happy about that.”

Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady.

Nick Cammett/Getty


Online viewers cheered and booed Brady during his debut.

“I don’t want to overreact to week 1 but Tom Brady is the worst commentator in the NFL,” posted one X user.

Another user joked: “Tom Brady is to broadcasting what Michael Jordan is to baseball.”

Others joked about a moment when Brady attempted to fist bump Fox rules analyst Mike Pereira, who was in the booth with him and Burkhardt. Pereira apparently didn’t see Brady’s hand and turned around before punching him back, leaving Brady smiling awkwardly and extending his arm toward Pereira’s back.

“Oh! Don’t leave me!” Brady joked before turning his attention back to the game.

Fox Sports football analyst Tom Brady (second from left) and play-by-play reporter Kevin Burkhardt (third from left) announce the second half of an NFL football game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Cleveland Browns.

James D. Smith via AP


But as Brady noted at one point, “I’m still a greenhorn here.”

According to Brady, he still has a “long road” ahead of him this season. Boston Globe columnist Chad Finn, who wrote that he believes the retired NFL star has shown he can hold his own after a few games in the booth.

“I’ll say it again. Brady is going to be really good at this,” Finn wrote.

Though the columnist pointed out that the pressure is on for the retired quarterback, who has to cover the Super Bowl on Fox at the end of this season. “Everything Brady does on the road is a warm-up for that,” he added.