Tom Brady will be entering the booth in the upcoming NFL season as he signed a contract to be an analyst for Fox Sports.

It seemed like the general public was skeptical of the deal. Sure, Brady’s knowledge of the game is unparalleled and he is sure to have thousands of hours worth of memories to share along with his technical insight. The problem though? He’s always been politically correct when at the podium or behind the mic. He has lightened up a bit since retiring, but he’s still on the conservative side.

Brady recently joined Colin Cowherd on his talk show and it was a great interview. They covered everything from today’s game, his playing experience, old war stories. That interview completely changed my opinion and extinguished any and all fear of how he will fare as an analyst.

Again, we all know how brilliant he was on the field. Well, he broke down some of Cowherds questions and provided some fantastic answers. He really showcased his ability to break things down.

One topic he spoke about was managing the ego of a top wide receiver.

Wide receivers in today’s game, to be frank, have massive egos. It’s a passing league and their roles have expanded greatly. They are some of the highest-paid players in the game and their contracts continue to skyrocket.

Cowherd essentially asked him if he felt obligated to cater to his star wide receivers during his playing days. When Brady played, he would have answered that question with something diplomatic like, “I treat all of my teammates the same.”

Not this time. He explained to Cowherd that he absolutely catered to those players and explained the importance of getting the ball to them early and often to help boost their confidence and allow them to make plays. He mentioned guys like Randy Moss, Julian Edelman, Rob Gronkowski and Wes Welker, specifically. He then went on to explain how it was always easier to feed tight ends and slot receivers than it was for true wideouts. It was refreshing to hear the honesty and intriguing to get a glimpse into what his mindset was as the greatest to ever do it.

He then went on to speak a little about Bill Belichick. Cowherd asked if Belichick, who is notorious for being strict and rigid, took it too far while preparing for games.

Again, Brady surprised me with his response. He said that the team was actually loose because of Belichick’s intensity. He explained that Belichick’s attention to detail and expectation of perfection actually allowed the players to be confident heading into a game, so confident that there was no fear. He then went on to explain how the offense would prepare and procedures when installing a game plan. Fascinating stuff. 

I’d highly recommend any football fan to check on the interview. You’ll learn a lot and walk away impressed. What I enjoyed about it especially were the questions that Cowherd asked.

Brady interviews have grown a little stale in recent years. How many times can we ask, “What’s it like being the best of all time?” How many times can we ask, “Did you and Bill Belichick really butt heads?” 

Cowherd asked great questions. He wanted to get into the head of Brady, he wanted to understand what made him great, but he asked in a way that not only received answers, but allowed Brady to really open up and dig into the details. There’s only so many times he can say, “I worked harder than everyone else.” Cowherd really brought the best out of him.

I’m an NFL nut and am even more excited after hearing this interview. I guess, as always, it was silly to doubt the greatest of all time.