Tom Brady may be the best quarterback and competitor in NFL history. However, that doesn’t necessarily qualify him to talk about it for a living. Yesterday, Brady made his debut as a commentator/analyst on Fox for Week 1. While Brady’s knowledge of the game is unquestionable, translating his high football IQ into something the average fan can understand and enjoy is another matter entirely.
The saddest thing about Brady’s move to the commentary booth is that he has displaced a very capable commentator from Fox’s top commentary team. That is former Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen, who has perfected the art of live TV analysis and surpassed even Tony Romo as the best in his field.
Meanwhile, the reviews of Brady’s first Sunday in his new job are starting to come in, and they are not good. By most accounts, Brady’s analysis was dull and clumsy, so bad in fact that a number of NFL fans took to social media to demand that Olsen get his old job back. Here are a few examples from Twitter. (Some are not appropriate for work.)
I would say Tom Brady is absolute trash and Fox should be ashamed of what they did to Greg Olsen.
– Dave (@BringOutDaGongs) 8 September 2024
I’ve heard enough about Tom Brady, justice for Greg Olsen
– Molly (@FSUmollz) 8 September 2024
Greg Olsen is currently scrolling to X pic.twitter.com/xcUV0jARIr
— Chris Alan (Gotta Be Honest special, airing October 2) (@ChrisAlanComedy) 8 September 2024
Greg Olsen > Tom Brady, by far!
— Brad Panovich (@wxbrad) 8 September 2024
Think about it: Tom Brady was hired for a position with no experience, replacing a proven guy who had worked his way up. Greg Olsen was great. The complete opposite of how things should work in America.
— John Gavutta (@gavutaclan) 8 September 2024
Greg Olsen was demoted for commenting on bad games at 1pm pic.twitter.com/lSNUOid6XX
– Alex Kirshner (@alex_kirshner) 8 September 2024
You treated Greg Olsen too harshly pic.twitter.com/vELjbrQCIn
— 🦑 (@CBAS5S) 8 September 2024
Tom Brady is too smart and ambitious not to become a good commentator soon. I won’t judge him too much after one game. But it was really annoying that Greg Olsen was demoted a level through no fault of his own. Olsen is the best co-commentator in the NFL today.
— Scott Pianowski (@scott_pianowski) 9 September 2024
Tom Brady has the charisma of a dirty rag. Greg Olsen is 1000000% better than him. Shame on @NFLonFOX
— Tom FC (@fantasydonkey) 8 September 2024
Maybe Brady will eventually grow into his new job and get good at it. But he will never surpass Olsen for one simple reason: He’s not nearly as likable. It takes some humility to realize that fans aren’t tuning in to hear the guys talk during the game. Brady was an all-time great winner for many reasons, but humility isn’t one of them.
On the other hand, Olsen understands that he’s not the main character, and he can explain his knowledge in a relatable and entertaining way. In that respect, winning seven Super Bowl rings is about as useful as a third arm.
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