On Sunday, Tom Brady might be feeling a little like he did when he posed in his boxers for a photo at the Scouting Combine. There’s no net. And social media is always ready to engage in antisocial activity.
He would be great if he spoke his mind. It’s becoming more and more clear that he won’t.
Brady has previously talked about the pitfalls of criticizing players. He has tried out a workaround that entails criticizing coaching, not quarterbacks.
The real-time problem for Brady becomes obvious. He’ll have to take his actual thoughts and massage them on the fly into something less candid and authentic.
That’s not what he experienced as a player. Especially not during 20 years with Bill Belichick, who always said exactly what he believed. And Brady will likely be irritated by the fact that he has to make his takes politically palatable.
We got a taste of it on Saturday. Appearing with Joel Klatt during halftime of the Texas-Michigan game on Fox, Brady seemed at times to be searching for words as he pivoted from what he wanted to say to what he actually said.
For example, when Brady was asked about the quarterbacks who will be playing in Brady’s debut, he pulled punches when talking about Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson.
“Deshaun wants to get out there and prove that . . . Cleveland made the investment in him and that he can come through when it matters,” Brady said.
The pause was noticeable. Brady wanted to say what he was thinking. Watson has gotten a five-year fully guaranteed contract. He has failed to earn it. If he doesn’t do it this year, Cleveland needs to think about cutting him a check for $92 million and telling him to hit the bricks.
That’s what Brady likely was thinking. (If not, he should have been.) Why not just say it?
Will saying what he really thinks create some problems? Hell, yes. He’ll have to talk through some ruffled feathers. Fans will think he “hates” their team. Some in the media might call him out for being too sharp in his assessments.
Who gives a shit? Brady knows the three-word mantra from New England better than anyone. Do your job. His job isn’t to mince words. His job isn’t to make people feel good. His job is to be honest with the audience about what he sees.
Anything less than that is a disservice to the audience.
Of course, it’s entirely possible that Brady’s criticism will be misplaced, because he won’t have direct, face-to-face access to teams through practices or production meetings, given his pending effort to buy a piece of the Raiders. (Not surprisingly, that issue didn’t come up during the Saturday interview.)
That’s all the more reason for him to pick a lane. He should want to be fully informed so that he can be completely blunt and candid, whatever the consequences.
Take it from me, Tommy. I’ve been candid and blunt for 23 years. It has caused some problems. Impaired some relationships. Prompted some phone calls from 345 Park Avenue to NBC.
Again, who gives a shit? Do your job. Serve the audience.
If nothing else, it’ll keep your brain from getting twisted up in knots as you try to transmogrify what you’d like to say into what you think you should say.