Tom Brady received a lot of criticism this week regarding the fairness of his role as Fox’s No. 1 analyst while he simultaneously serves as a minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders.
But Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer doesn’t seem to be concerned about the potential conflict of interest.
“Everybody’s got their own opinion,” Schottenhimer said on his Friday segment with Dallas sports radio hosts Shan Shariff and RJ Choppy, via Awful Announcing. “I talked to Tom yesterday and Kevin Burkhardt and Erin Andrews and their producers and stuff. I’m very open with all those guys,” Schottenheimer said before going on to downplay the conflict of interest. “There’s no secrets in this business, guys. Let’s be honest, Pete Carroll and I know each other as well as anybody. Pete has three of my playbooks. I know Pete, I know what Pete is saying to his team.
“Everybody’s got their own opinion. I talked to Tom yesterday and Kevin Burkhardt and Erin Andrews and their producers and stuff. I’m very open with all those guys. There’s no secrets in this business, guys. Let’s be honest, [Raiders head coach] Pete Carroll and I know each other as well as anybody. Pete has three of my playbooks. I know Pete, I know what Pete is saying to his team.”
On Monday, as the Raiders hosted the Chargers on Fox’s broadcast, Brady was shown sitting in Las Vegas’ coaching booth with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly. That, coupled with a report from ESPN’s Peter Schrager that Brady and Kely meet “two to three times a week,” unsettled some people.
The NFL released a statement on the matter on Tuesday.
“There are no policies that prohibit an owner from sitting in the coaches’ booth or wearing a headset during a game. Brady was sitting in the booth in his capacity as a limited partner.”
“All personnel sitting in the booth must abide by policies that prohibit the use of electronic devices other than league-issued equipment such as a Microsoft Surface Tablet for the Sideline Viewing System … ” the statement continues. “Tom continues to be prohibited from going to a team facility for practices or production meetings. He may attend production meetings remotely but may not attend in person at the team facility or hotel. He may also conduct an interview off site with a player like he did last year a couple times, including for the Super Bowl. Of course, as with any production meeting with broadcast teams, it’s up to the club, coach or players to determine what they say in those sessions.”
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