PHILADELPHIA — Eagles fans should be ready to hear a lot more from Tom Brady.
The seven-time Super Bowl champion is set to join Fox Sports now that he’s announced his retirement from the NFL after 23 seasons. We went through a similar situation last offseason, but, this time, Brady assures us it’s for real.
“Good morning guys. I’ll get to the point right away,” Brady said in a video shared on social media Wednesday morning. “I’m retiring. For good.”
Now, Brady, 45, is set to join Fox Sports as the network’s top NFL analyst, replacing former Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen.
“Over the course of this long-term agreement, Tom will not only call our biggest NFL games with Kevin Burkhardt, but will also serve as an ambassador for us, particularly with respect to client and promotional initiatives,” Fox Corporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch announced in May.
Here’s what we know about Brady joining Fox Sports:
Will Tom Brady call this year’s Super Bowl for Fox?
No.
Fox has been pretty clear that Burkhardt and Olsen will call this year’s Super Bowl between the Eagles and Kansas City Chiefs. Burkhardt and Olsen have been Fox’s No. 1 crew this season and called last weekend’s Eagles-49ers NFC championship game.
But unless Brady backs out of his lucrative Fox Sports deal before it starts, he will join the No. 1 booth ahead of the 2023 season, and it seems unlikely Fox would place him in a three-man booth alongside Burkhardt and Olsen. The most likely scenario is Olsen would drop to Fox’s No. 2 booth with Joe Davis, who called games this season alongside Daryl Johnston.
For his part, Olsen has been honest about ultimately being replaced by Brady.
“Will I be disappointed? Would I rather sit next to Kevin for the next 20 years? Of course. I’m not going to sit here and sound stupid and be like, ‘You know, just doing this for one year was plenty.’ Like, no, screw that. I’d like to do this for 20 years. I’d like to call 10 Super Bowls,” Olsen told The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch in an interview last week.
Burkhardt told Deitsch he hadn’t spoken to Brady much since texting him after the May announcement that he’d be joining Fox.
“I’ve obviously seen Tom a lot during games. We’ve had Tampa a bunch this year, and he’s been great with us," Burkhardt said. “But the last communication I had with him about broadcasting was whenever that was in the summer.”
Will Tom Brady be part of Fox’s Super Bowl coverage?
That remains unclear. Fox Sports declined to comment on Brady’s potential role in studio coverage leading up to the Super Bowl.
In October, Front Office Sports reported that Fox “definitely” wanted Brady to be part of its Super Bowl coverage. It’s hard to imagine Fox not wanting to promote its connection with Brady to an audience of 100 million-plus people, but the network hasn’t announced anything about his potential role. Brady also wasn’t listed in Fox’s lengthy press release touting its personalities and shows for Super Bowl week.
There might be an opening. With Sean Payton reportedly being hired as the new head coach of the Denver Broncos, there could be a spot open in Fox’s studio coverage for Brady to slide into. He also could join the network’s flagship Fox NFL Sunday pregame show along with former teammate Rob Gronkowski.
How much is Fox Sports paying Brady?
Terms of the deal were not announced. According to Andrew Marchand of the New York Post, Fox signed Brady to a 10-year deal worth $375 million. That works out to $37.5 million a year, which easily would be the largest sportscasting contract in television history.
Fox Sports has disputed the figure, saying in a May statement, “What has been reported is not an accurate description of the deal.” But it didn’t offer more specifics.
Brady will get the chance to call the Super Bowl
Assuming he joins Fox, it won’t take long before Brady is calling his first Super Bowl.
The network has the TV rights for Super Bowl LIX in 2025, which will take place at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.
Fox also has the TV rights to broadcast Super Bowl LXIII in 2029 and Super Bowl LXVII in 2033.
Eagles have some history with Tom Brady
Spending 20 of his 22 seasons with the New England Patriots and his final two with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brady had a career record of 7-2 against the Eagles. He is the only quarterback in NFL history to win and lose a Super Bowl against the same team: the Eagles.
