Tom Brady fires back at ‘clickbait’ TV critics as stance revealed on fulfilling record $375m Fox contract

Tom Brady has heard and seen the criticism.

But the greatest quarterback in NFL history is still dismissive of his biggest critics.

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Thanks to a record 10-year, $375 million contract and FOX immediately handing the seven-time Super Bowl champion the No. 1 analyst spot for NFL coverage, Brady’s weekly performance on television has been under the microscope since his first game.

At times, the former New England Patriots superstar has appeared overwhelmed by the national TV spotlight.

But Brady also showed clear improvement in the booth during year two and he’s entering his third season with co-announcer Kevin Burkhardt, while J.J. Watt has been elevated to CBS Sports’ lead analyst role following Tony Romo‘s off-the-field troubles.

Brady has heard the criticism that has shadowed his TV work for two years — and he’s not buying into the noise.

“It’s clickbait for people, and it’s something that people have no idea what they’re really glomming onto,” Brady told Sports Business Journal.

“They just put it out there in the world and see what sticks. So to me, I just focus on what I need to do to be prepared. That’s what I did as a player, and I go out there every week as a broadcaster and try to do the same thing.”

On the field, Brady is the undisputed GOAT of QBs.

He earned 15 Pro Bowl selections, won five Super Bowl MVPs and earned three NFL MVPs.

But the No. 199 overall pick of the 2000 NFL Draft was heavily criticized during his first season on TV, and his part-ownership of the Las Vegas Raiders has led to conflict-of-interest accusations.

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FOX Sports

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Brady’s pre-game involvement with teams is also limited because of his ownership ties to the Raiders.

“I have a lot to prove to myself, to my teammates,” Brady said.

“I have a lot to prove to the executives. I want to go earn it, and I don’t want anything given to me. I hope they’ll have me through the end of this contract. I love getting to enjoy the game. I love watching good football.

“There’s such great camaraderie and chemistry we all have together. We have seminars. We have off-site retreats. We have text threads with all of us. It feels like a big family in so many ways, and I was not really expecting that when I decided to take the job.”

Brady and Burkhardt aren’t scheduled to call another Super Bowl until 2029.

ESPN (Super Bowl LXI) and CBS (LXII) are set to broadcast the next two big games.

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But even Brady’s loaded schedule — which balances part-ownership of Birmingham City and the development of Raiders No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza with fake fights vs Logan Paul — isn’t expected to get in the way of his historic TV contract.

Brady has remained adamant that he’s committed to calling NFL games annually on FOX — and he’s eager to prove his remaining critics wrong.

“From the moment we signed Tom, no matter what was written or said, I have never gotten an indication from Tom that he is not into this for the long haul,” said Brad Zager, FOX Sports president and executive producer.

“For over a decade, we also heard about (Troy Aikman) possibly taking a front office job. Rumors like that were always out there. You don’t know what the future holds, but I can tell you right now that we have had no discussions with Tom that didn’t involve him being here for a long time.”