Tom Brady was likely feeling nervous as he stepped into the broadcast booth for the first time Sunday afternoon and an awkward on-air interaction with one of his new colleagues would have done nothing to ease his anxiousness.
The Cleveland Browns‘ home season opener against the Dallas Cowboys marked the beginning of the 47-year-old’s 10-year, $375 million deal as Fox Sports’ lead NFL analyst.
However, Brady’s broadcasting debut didn’t get off to the smoothest of starts. In addition to being ripped for his first time in the booth, the former quarterback suffered an on-air blunder.
Brady and Kevin Burkhardt, who was calling the Cowboys-Browns game, were joined in the booth by Mike Pereira, who has long served as the network’s NFL rules analyst.
The seven-time Super Bowl winner and Pereira shared an cringe-worth exchange during the first half of the Cowboys’ win when Brady tried to get a fist bump from the analyst.
Tom Brady began his Fox analyst career alongside Kevin Burkhardt (left) on Sunday
The former quarterback was left hanging by rules analyst Mike Pereira (left) during the game
Burkhardt welcomed Pereira onto the broadcast, telling him it was ‘good to have you back,’ which prompted Brady to turn to the analyst and hold out his fist.
However, Pereira snubbed Brady’s attempt at camaraderie, leading the NFL legend to plead, ‘Come on now, don’t leave me hanging!’ Pereira eventually reciprocated, albeit far from enthusiastically.
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Pereira has been with Fox since 2010 in his role as NFL and college football rules analyst, providing insight into any plays, calls or circumstances that warrant a rules interpretation or explanation.
A former former Vice President of NFL Officiating, Pereira retired from the league in 2009 after 14 years.
It wasn’t the only humiliation Brady had to endure Sunday evening as his debut was slammed by NFL fans online.
Throughout his glittering career on the field, Brady was named MVP of the league three times and the MVP of the Super Bowl five times – the most of any player.
His greatest accolades – seven Super Bowl rings – are also the most of any player in league history.
But it appeared his skills on the football field did not translate to the booth as many fans were quick to rip into Brady’s debut on the mic.
Pereira eventually reciprocated the seven-time Super Bowl winner’s fist pump
Brady was slammed by NFL fans on social media over his broadcasting debut on Fox
Within 20 minutes of the NFL legend’s announcing curtain raiser, social media users on X, formerly known as Twitter , has already branded him ‘atrocious.’
‘Tom Brady ain’t stuttered this much since he told Gisele he got one more year in him,’ one user posted referring to the former signal caller’s decision to un-retire for one more season in the NFL, which came months before his divorce from supermodel Gisele Bundchen.
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‘Maybe someone should have listened to Tom Brady actually say words before dropping $300 million on him,’ another scathingly posted, while another echoed the criticism, adding, ‘Tom Brady can’t seem to form any sentences that have any sort of normal cadence to them.’
‘Tom Brady just said it’s hard to make 10, but really hard to make 20 yards. That’s what $375 million worth of analysis gets you folks,’ one quipped.
Others echoed the sentiment, suggesting Brady’s analysis was boring with one user writing: ‘Tom Brady needs to be hella interesting to listen to, because his speaking voice isn’t super pleasant to listen to And so far, he is not.’
