Tom Brady is leaving no stone unturned as he prepares for his NFL broadcasting debut this fall.
During an appearance Tuesday on Kay Adams’ “Up and Adams” show, NBC announcer Cris Collinsworth shared that an “insane and intense” Brady phoned him for advice ahead of his first game as the lead NFL analyst for Fox Sports.
“I was like, ‘Tom, just be you.’ People know who you are. Just be you,” the “Sunday Night Football” announcer said.
“Go on there and talk about football and have some fun. He’ll be great.”
Brady, who retired from the NFL in February 2023 after 23 seasons, signed a ten-year, $375 million deal with Fox Sports in May 2022.
Although the seven-time Super Bowl champion has zero broadcasting experience, his vast knowledge of the game as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time will offer a unique perspective to audiences.
“He’s studying hard. He’s working on it,” Collinsworth, 65, said. “He’s done 1000 different practice games.”
A former NFL wide receiver, Collinsworth spent eight seasons in the league before transitioning to broadcasting. Since 2009, the 17-time Sports Emmy winner has appeared on “Sunday Night Football.”
“Tom is a great guy. He’s gonna be brilliant,” Collinsworth said.
Brady replaces Greg Olsen, who spent the last two seasons in Fox’s top NFL group alongside Kevin Burkhardt.
Olsen, a former NFL tight end, won the Sports Emmy Award for Outstanding Personality/Event Analyst in May 2024 for his work.
He will now be part of Fox’s No. 2 team with Joe Davis, with his salary dropping from $10 million to $3 million.
Olsen, 39, revealed in May that Brady, 46, sought his advice.
“He [Brady] was just kind of picking my brain about the prep and the industry and what to expect and whatnot,” Olsen told USA Today. “So, I don’t know. Every guy has their own journey in sports broadcasting. I think everyone thinks it’s easy.
“I think everyone thinks getting up there and calling a live football game for three hours off the cuff, and being able to get in, get out, deal with the flow of the game, the players, the schemes, the terminology — there’s a lot going on during a game, and I think some guys really transition to it well and take to it pretty quickly. And other guys haven’t. We’ve seen a mixed bag of results over the last couple of years.”
Brady’s anticipated NFL broadcasting debut is set for Sunday, Sept. 8, when the Browns host the Cowboys in their season opener.
Here’s hoping that day goes far better than his UFL championship appearance in June, when he was booed by spectators while serving as a Fox broadcaster.