When Tom Brady finally decided to hang his cleats up as a professional football player to join Fox Network’s team of analysts, there was a lot of anticipation about the move. In any case, he is the GOAT, with seven Super Bowl rings to his credit. However, instead of the surprise that would enchant the spectators, Brady’s first experience in the booth in the game between the Cleveland Browns and the Dallas Cowboys met with rather dissatisfied viewers.

Sports commentator Paul Finebaum was not at all kind when he offered his opinion. What stood out for Finebaum was that Brady’s speech was quite uninspiring and only full of trite platitudes where he could have gone so much deeper. “Fumble and waste the audience’s time with hackneyed cliches and tempered comments when good”, Paul remarked. On the other hand, Finebaum lavished praises on Nick Saban, especially his analytical ability and the acerbic comments that he brought to the program in sharp contrast to Brady’s. “He’s brilliant. I was prepared for him to be smart. He’s the best coach of all time”, Paul said.

Finebaum, in his usual crude style, said that Brady didn’t grab the opportunity. It was a chance to deliver insight and commentary that can be useful among TV network executives. Instead, he called Brady’s comments rather cliched and unimaginative, not to mention that Brady should be using his vast experience and knowledge of the game. 

But Finebaum has been much more complimentary of Nick Saban’s early work in the booth. Saban, the legendary coach who spent 15 years of his preparation planning his every move on the football field, has now taken to broadcasting where Finebaum says he has been ‘brilliant’. 

Comparing Nick Saban and Tom Brady: a tale of two broadcasters

Nick Saban and Tom Brady have established themselves as great minds in the sporting arena and when Paul Finebaum compared the both in their broadcasting careers, differences and efficiencies came out clearly. The popular, now in sports commentaries, Nick Saban is praised for bringing in fresh air to the field. His coaching-to-commentating transition may have been perfect and outstanding.

After being introduced by his play-by-play partner Kevin Burkhardt, Brady did not seem at ease in his rookie game as the lead color commentator. A lot of people criticised Brady’s initial commentary, as being shallow, even though he is one of the most successful athletes. Instead of bringing some new angle or coming up with new ideas or new profound understanding of the events, his remarks were considered as being rather banal and reiterative. Finebaum’s critique suggests that Brady’s transition to broadcasting might have been more about capitalizing on his celebrity status rather than delivering compelling and analytical commentary.

Unfortunately, Saban’s and Brady’s cases demonstrate that transitioning athletes to broadcasting is not always easy. Despite this, though Saban has been able to use his vast football expertise to bring value to the program; the same can however not be said about Brady after failing to deliver as expected given his icon status. This fact clearly shows that even though for some people, broadcasting and playing the same sport are just two sides of the same coin, these two professions, and need an entirely different set of skills.