The coaching search ups the ante on Tom Brady’s conflict of interest

Raiders minority owner Tom Brady involved In his team’s search for a coach. Fox broadcaster Tom Brady will work on postseason games that include one or more candidates set to be his team’s next coach.

The situation raises Brady’s conflict of interest to a higher level.

The Raiders’ initial candidates include Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken and Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. If Fox gets a divisional game involving the Lions, Brady will work on that game. If the Lions qualify for the conference tournament, Brady will work on that game.

If the Lions, Ravens or Chiefs qualify for the Super Bowl, Brady will work on that game.

The NFL’s restrictions on Brady’s ability to attend practice and participate in production meetings, due to his ownership of the Raiders, do not prevent him from contacting people associated with an upcoming game, or from speaking with them face-to-face on the field. During warm-ups before the match.

Will he be allowed to talk to Johnson and Glenn? (We are in the process of getting clarification on this question from the NFL.)

It’s easy for the league (or anyone else) to say, “Tom will never cross the line during these conversations.” However, in eight days, we will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the game that led the NFL to conclude that Brady cheated and later covered up evidence of his cheating.

from NFL letter to Brady When he was suspended four games for #Deflategate:

“(T)here is substantial and credible evidence concluding that you were at least generally aware of the actions of the Patriots employees involved in the deflation and that it is unlikely that their actions occurred without your knowledge. Further, the report documents your failure to cooperate fully and forthrightly.” with the investigation, including refusing to provide any relevant electronic evidence (emails, texts, etc.), despite providing exceptional safeguards by investigators to protect irrelevant personal information, and by providing testimony that the Unreasonable and inconsistent with other evidence.

“Your actions as set out in the report clearly constitute conduct that is detrimental to the integrity and public confidence in the game of professional football. The integrity of the game is of the utmost importance to everyone in our league, and requires an unwavering commitment to fairness and compliance with the rules of play. Every player, no matter how accomplished, is respected.” , has an obligation to comply with the rules and must take responsibility for his actions when these rules are violated and public confidence in the game is in question.

Furthermore, there is a difference between unfitness and the appearance of unfitness. Even if Brady never did anything like what the university accused him of doing a decade ago, it seems odd.

Beyond Brady’s pregame calls with the Raiders’ coaching candidates, consider his in-game observations about them. Will he punish them for criticizing them if they do something he thinks is stupid? Will he exaggerate in his praise of them? Will he comment on their future as potential coaches?

Will he mention that the Raiders are interested? Will he reveal to the Fox audience that he owns about 10 percent of the team? (Has he ever?)

In post-standards America, few people seem to care about this. It should be more. The NFL should ask Brady to choose a path. Brady has to do it alone.

We still think the league hopes to eventually do so. Even now, he seems oblivious to the minefield as he wanders. Which means either he has less self-awareness than Michael Scott or Brady is fully aware of the fact that he can do whatever the hell he wants.

However, the league has seen a dramatic shift in its attitude toward Brady. In 2015, they thought he was a cheater, and basically a liar. In 2025, they have a bigger blind spot for Brady than the case that holds, among other things, the Super Bowl MVP trophy he won two weeks after the #Deflategate game.