Tom Brady’s juggling act as Raiders owner and TV analyst seems untenable for Fox

Troy Aikman was angry – and honest.

“I don’t like the call at all,” Aikman said.

Aikman, ESPN’s lead analyst for “Monday Night Football,” reacted to a penalty during the final game broadcast. With the Buffalo Bills trailing the New York Jets 20-17 with 9:32 left in the third quarter, Buffalo linebacker AJ Epenesa was called for a harsh passer penalty on Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a decision that unified Rodgers Day later self-described “A bit ridiculous.”

After explaining the call on the field, Russell Yurk, former NFL vice president of instant replay and administration and now a rules analyst for ESPN’s “Monday Night Football,” agreed: “Troy, the reason they called is this situation.” because he lands with most or all of his body weight. It looked like he was trying to move a hand to the side, but obviously the referee felt he hadn’t made enough attempts to steady it.”

Even more annoyed, Aikman said, “I get it. I don’t like it.”

Last Monday the flags kept coming, with the teams combining for 22 penalties for 204 yards. With 2:47 left in the final quarter, Aikman had had enough. He spoke on behalf of much of the audience: “It’s like a preseason game,” Aikman said.

When he saw Aikman on Monday — he and play-by-play announcer Joe Buck have been sensational this season — he didn’t sugarcoat the officials. Aikman praised lead official Adrian Hill’s crew for correctly identifying the penalties. He criticized when he thought they had missed something. He was unfiltered, he cut no corners and he upheld the unspoken agreement that a sports television analyst should have with the audience: Stay true to what you see.

That brings us to Tom Brady.

On Tuesday, NFL team owners voted unanimously to give Brady partial ownership of the Las Vegas Raiders. Brady and Tom Wagner, co-founders of Knighthead Capital Management, are said to have bought about 10 percent of the Raiders.

If Brady were simply a would-be Hall of Famer extending his connection to the NFL through ownership, that would be a story, but not one with implications for those who see the product. As the sports world knows, Brady debuted in September as Fox’s No. 1 NFL analyst this season alongside play-by-play voice Kevin Burkhardt. Fox has broadcast rights to the Super Bowl this year, meaning Brady will broadcast the league’s most important game. He has six games in a 10-year, $375 million contract with Fox Corp.

How can someone broadcast games while owning a significant stake in a franchise? Well, the NFL placed restrictions on Brady before the season, including not allowing him access to other teams’ facilities or training sessions and not being allowed to participate in production meetings for television broadcasts. But here’s the important thing for the purposes of this column: As an owner, Brady is also not allowed to publicly criticize officials or other teams, and he could be fined or suspended if the league feels he is violating violates this policy.

“Tom has stuck to the issues that we in the committee have voluntarily raised since he began broadcasting, so everything is resolved,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell told reporters on Tuesday. “It has been followed very clearly and everyone seems happy with it.”

The NFL confirmed the same on Wednesday: “There were no issues and Tom was a wonderful addition to NFL broadcasts,” a league spokesman said.

So that’s the league perspective. But what about the viewers? There is an implicit agreement between those broadcasting games and the audience: we work for you, the viewer. We now live in the real world, and sports media jobs have long had conflicts of interest. (Look no further than professional tennis, where coaches also serve as on-air analysts.) But predetermined limits on what you can say don’t allow for a solution. The league has told a top NFL analyst that there is a limit to what he can say under the NFL’s charter and bylaws. Think about what would happen if there was a failed call that cost someone the Super Bowl. Maybe Brady would ignore the restrictions and just attack the officers. Maybe he’ll get a few hits. The point is that restriction changes everything.

When asked how Fox Sports viewed the broadcast restrictions on Brady and how they thought it was possible that Brady might be assigned to games in Las Vegas, Fox Sports declined to comment.

It’s important to note that nothing changes for Fox Sports if Brady is cleared on Tuesday. They have been working under these guidelines since the start of the season and Fox Sports is pleased with Brady’s development and work. His next assignment is the Super Bowl rematch between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers on Sunday at 4:25 p.m. ET on Fox.

This week, The athlete contacted a few sports television producers and all confirmed that the reaction from the league and owners is worth watching as Brady moves deeper into the season. Everyone thought Brady could overcome any restrictions on production meetings and practices – coaches and players will turn to him – but the restrictions on comments are the third rail.

The producers also noticed something interesting: People will actively listen and pay careful attention when Brady says something critical about another franchise or official. Also the opposite. People will judge whether he is intentionally avoiding what is in front of him. This is chaos for everyone.

“You have to at least know that you have the freedom to express your opinion about officiating,” said a veteran NFL broadcaster who was granted anonymity to speak candidly. “These are split-second decisions on air. You can’t think about whether the league will be happy.”

I’ve often written in this column about Richie Zyontz and Rich Russo, the lead producer and director of Fox’s No. 1 NFL team. They are widely regarded as the best there is in sports production. Brady has improved in his six games – he’s by no means transformative and nowhere near Aikman’s level, but he’s certainly a serviceable analyst – and he’s been supported by a lot of good people who have put him in successful spots. He has also received great reviews from behind-the-scenes staff and on-air colleagues about how he truly integrates into a team.

But good production can only overcome so much. Missing production meetings is a minor problem. It is an unconscious self-censorship based on ownership. If I had to predict: The restrictions are unsustainable in the long term and Brady will leave the dressing room long before the end of his contract.

(Top photo: Kevin Sabitus / Getty Images)