Tom Brady’s insistence on working for Fox while owning part of the Raiders creates potential complications beyond restrictions on his access to the team’s facilities and practices. When it comes to criticizing game officials, there’s a line he can’t cross.
As the league has previously explained, Brady is prohibited from “blatantly criticizing officiating” or “questioning the integrity of any official or crew.”
Sunday in Detroit, Brady criticized several officials’ decisions. The overarching question is whether the league office will consider the criticism “egregious.”
In the third quarter, Packers linebacker Brenton Cox Jr. threw Lions quarterback Jared Goff to the ground after a throw. Officials called Cox out for roughing the smuggler.
“Not much at all,” Brady said during the replay. “He just came out of the neighborhood. His face is buried. I don’t know. I mean…that’s a tough question.”
Fox rules analyst (and former NFL senior vice president of officiating) Dean Blandino agreed. “He’s coming out of the neighborhood,” Blandino said. “You definitely want to see more strength there. It’s almost like he’s just trying to hold on. There’s no real extension. I don’t like it as being brutal.”
“I don’t like it either,” Brady said.
In the fourth quarter, after Lions linebacker Derrick Barnes was flagged for an illegal hit on Packers running back MarShawn Lloyd, Brady came clean.
“What?” » said Brady. “There’s no way. . . Oh, come on, man. Come on. (Jordan) Love throws it over the middle. There’s linebackers in the middle. He just turns his right shoulder away. That allows him 99 times out of 100. . . . It’s a bang-bang play. I know in super slow motion, every little frame of a minute looks like a lot, but when you’re on the field, you’ve got to chase that ball. If (Lloyd) catches him, (Barnes) needs force to knock him to the ground.
Later, in Detroit’s victory, Brady called on a questionable passer call after Packers defensive tackle Karl Brooks hit Lions quarterback Jared Goff after a throw.
“Oh my God, what is this?” » said Brady. “There’s no way! Brooks on the tackle. It’s kind of a great play. It’s a bang-bang play. It rolls off his body. It’s a great throw from Goff. It’s definitely not brutal on the passer. I mean, you – you’re just tearing up the line of scrimmage to try to put the quarterback on the ground. Listen, I love Goff standing there in the pocket. But you just can’t keep tacking on 15 meters.
Blandino again agreed with Brady’s assessment. “It wasn’t late,” Blandino said. “They could have talked about the head/neck area. But it’s not the head/neck area. His head is up. It’s a teaching tape tackle. It doesn’t rough up the passer.”
Each of the calls seemed unwarranted. But league rules don’t create an exception based on the accuracy of reviews. Team personnel (including owners) can’t say much when it comes to publicly criticizing officials.
Is it “blatant”? The folks at Merriam-Webster define the term as “very visible.” If this is the same definition used by the NFL, Brady’s comments are valid.
This has nothing to do with Brady’s role as a broadcaster. (If anything, Kevin Burkhardt’s criticism of these calls was even stronger.) However, the league has a policy that muzzles team personnel, including owners.
If Brady is going after this, it’s not because he works for Fox. That’s because he works for Fox while owning part of the Raiders.
Gn sports
