Tom Brady isn't backing down. After sparking controversy when cameras caught him in the Raiders' coaches' booth during their Week 2 game against the Chargers, the seven-time Super Bowl champion has now addressed the uproar directly.
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Brady, a minority owner of the Raiders and a FOX game analyst, was seen wearing a headset and sitting with staff on "Monday Night Football."
ESPN's Peter Schrager even reported Brady regularly meets with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly. That raised eyebrows across the league, with fans and media blasting what they saw as an obvious conflict of interest.
In his personal newsletter this week (via TMZ), Brady called the backlash "paranoid" and said his dual roles aren't a problem. In fact, he insisted they're part of his responsibility to the sport.
"I love football. At its core it is a game of principles," Brady wrote. "And with all the success it has given me, I feel I have a moral and ethical duty to the sport; which is why the point where my roles in it intersect is not actually a point of conflict, despite what the paranoid and distrustful might believe. Rather, it's the place from which my ethical duty emerges: to grow, evolve, and improve the game that has given me everything."
Brady also took a swipe at those questioning his motives, calling them "selfish" and the kind of people who "make horrible teammates."
The NFL has already said Brady didn't break any rules, though his access is limited. He's barred from practices or in-person team meetings, and production calls with coaching staffs can only happen remotely. Still, the optics of Brady working closely with Raiders coaches while also getting behind-the-scenes access to other teams fuels the debate.
For Brady, though, the mission is clear: he wants to help the Silver & Black return to the glory days of Al Davis and John Madden — and he's not apologizing for it.
