Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin surprised by Tom Brady’s egoless approach to $375,000,000 FOX broadcasting job
We'll be seeing a lot of Tom Brady this season with the seven-time Super Bowl champion set to make his NFL broadcasting debut with Fox this season. Brady will call his first game in the booth when the Dallas Cowboys take on the Browns in Cleveland in Week 1 on Sunday, September 8.
Week 1 may be a few weeks away but Brady is preparing pretty meticulously for his first full-time job in retirement. Brady's close friend and Fanatics CEO and Founder Michael Rubin made an appearance on ESPN insider Adam Schefter's podcast this week and explained why he thinks the New England Patriots legend will conquer the world of broadcasting. Rubin said:
“He’s first up. He’s always hustling. He’s always grinding. He has that unrelenting will, he’s always going toiwin at whatever he does. Before I knew him the way I know him today, I would not have known how crazy focused he is. Now that I look at him I think ‘Why didn’t he win 15 Super Bowls?’
"Because his intensity is so much better than anyone I know. I think he’s going to do incredible in the booth because he’s already out there asking question after question. He’s super humble. He’s competent but humble, you see where all that success comes from."
Rubin added that he was a little surprised by how Brady's ego wasn't getting in the way, especially considering the fact that Fox handed him a blockbuster $375 million deal to stay in the broadcasting booth for ten years.
“Most people that are getting paid $400 million over 10 years, most people who make that money, their ego would never allow them to call around and ask each person what do they do,” Rubin said.
Which games could Tom Brady call with Fox?
All we know so far is that Brady will definitely be in the booth for Cowboys-Browns in Week 1. Beyond that, it's anyone's guess, though the schedule offers a few hints as to which games Fox will likely have Brady on for.
In the Week 2 schedule, we could very well see the seven-time Super Bowl champ call his first Patriots game when they welcome the Seattle Seahawks on September 15, Sunday afternoon. There's also the Bucs-Lions game but considering the Pats game is in Foxboro, having Brady call the Seahawks game would be good business.
Beyond that, Week 3's Ravens-Cowboys matchup (which would be his first high-profile game), Week 4's Patriots-49ers game (Brady's former team vs hometown team) and Week 5's Dolphins-Patriots (Brady's former team vs Brady's almost team) are safe bets for Brady's availability in the broadcasting booth
Beyond that, it's a little up in the air though we'd love to get his thoughts on the Chiefs-49ers Super Bowl matchup in Week 7. Could we also see Brady in the booth when the Giants take on the Cowboys on Thanksgiving? It's anyone's guess but it's likely that Fox will ensure he gets a lot of face time, especially considering they demoted Greg Olsen to accommodate him this year.