Joe Buck wants football fans to have some patience with Tom Brady.
The legendary quarterback made his debut in the booth for Fox during Sunday’s Cowboys-Browns game, and it was up-and-down, to say the least.
Buck, who has been calling NFL games since 1994, said on “The Michael Kay Show” on Monday that Brady needs much more time behind the mic before any conclusions about him as a color analyst can be made.
“This is a hard job, and we all do our piece of it,” said Buck. “We all have to be able to settle in; know what you need to know. I talked to him on Friday, and I don’t think anybody’s put in more work into being prepared for his first broadcast than Tom did. And now, you have to go forward and settle in. It’s grossly unfair that everybody wants to weigh in after five seconds. That’s not the way it works.”
NFL Network RedZone host Scott Hanson was among those calling for Brady to “get more excited than that in the booth,” on Sunday, though he quickly apologized for the critique — with Brady telling him there was no need.
Buck, an all-time great in his own right, likened Brady’s debut as a broadcaster to other shaky starts on the air.
“That’s not the way it worked for Jimmy Fallon doing ‘The Tonight Show.’ Conan O’Brien taking over for David (Letterman); he was on a day-by-day or week-by-week contract. It’s hard to work that way. So, I think he’ll be great; I stand by that. We all watched and enjoyed it, and I’ll be doing it again next week.”
Brady signed a 10-year, $375 million deal to join Fox two years ago.
He has reportedly been steadfast in his preparation for his career as a broadcaster over the past year – his first off the field after retiring following the 2022 season – reaching out to fellow NFL commentators Tony Romo, Greg Olson and others for advice.