Tim Heitman-Imagn Images
A lot of people, outside of Las Vegas, are getting very prickly these days when it comes to Tom Brady being both a broadcaster as well as an owner of the Raiders. The ones that are upset believe the situation is a conflict of interest, considering Tom Brady is now allowed to be present in production meetings before games.
That feeling was only amplified by Tom Brady being shown sitting in the Raiders’ coaches booth wearing a set of headphones during Monday night’s Raiders game against the Chargers. Making it somehow even worse, the NFL deleted a video on social media detailing his involvement with the Raiders and the team’s offensive coordinator Chip Kelly.
A perfect example of how this situation is being perceived, from both sides of the argument, came this week during separate interviews with two longtime NFL broadcasters: Ian Eagle and Rodney Harrison.
Ian Eagle doesn’t think there is much conflict of interest involving Tom Brady
“The whole production meeting part of it is very much individualized to the group that you work with,” Eagle said on the You Better You Bet show. “My point being no two are alike. It’s not as if it’s the same dynamic no matter who’s calling the game. It’s based on relationships. It’s based on how much time you’re around them, familiarity, have you had that team over and over again? Are you seeing the same coach five or six times a year? Are you seeing them over the course of 15 years in their coaching career?”
Eagle went on to state, “So, the idea that any broadcast crew just walks into a facility and they’re getting inside information is just not true; it just doesn’t work that way. But, if you put in the time, and there’s a trust factor, yeah, there’s a scenario where you might get a little something that’s helpful to you for your Sunday broadcast. And maybe it’s not something that’s been in the newspaper or the press conferences the whole week.”
"I'm not sure this year is a whole lot different than last year."
Ian Eagle tells @TheKostos & @FemiAbebefe that seeing Tom Brady in the booth might be bad optics, but he's not getting any extra information in production meetings. pic.twitter.com/xqlmm5tHxv
— You Better You Bet (@YouBetterYouBet) September 19, 2025
Rodney Harrison thinks Tom Brady and the Raiders have an unfair advantage
On the flip side of the argument is Rodney Harrison, who notably was teammates with Tom Brady on the New England Patriots.
“I played 15 years in the league, but I’ve been a broadcaster for 17 years. And it’s definitely a conflict of interest,” Harrison said on Football Night in America. “When we walk on that field, we get so much information. We get all the behind-the-scenes information. We get which, you know, the average fan has no idea the type of information we’re getting. We’re getting information on players’ health, how a team was built, and how tough a guy is. You could talk to scouts, coaches, general managers, and just people within the organization. They’re going to give you this information.
“And Tom Brady’s a smart dude. He’s gonna use this. He’s gonna use it. It’s human nature to use the information. If he talks to Howie Roseman, or Howie tells him how he builds a team, you don’t think he’s going to take that back to the Raiders and use the same thing? And just think about free agency. If somebody told him, ‘Oh, this guy’s not very tough.’ When that guy becomes a free agent, he already knows, ‘Hey, I’m gonna back away from that.’ So, it’s definitely a conflict of interest.”
For what it’s worth, former Super Bowl winning-coach Tony Dungy, who also has been in broadcasting for years, agreed with Harrison. “Him being in the booth is not the problem. The problem is he gets to go around to the other 31 teams and get information that no other owner is going to be able to get,” he said.