Former Patriots teammate shares broadcasting advice for Tom Brady

Before former New England Patriots running back James White served as a SiriusXM co-host and a Big Ten Network analyst, he shared a locker room with Tom Brady from 2014 through the 2019 campaign. 

On the latest episode of the "Eye on Foxborough" podcast, White offered Brady some advice as the 46-year-old prepares to become Fox Sports' lead NFL analyst this coming season.

"It’s hard to speak about people [who] you’ve played with or coaches that have coached you," White explained, per Chris Mason of MassLive. "It’s definitely hard to be critical of them just because you’ve obviously been on the other side of things, sharing the same locker room or sharing the same building with them. So I’d say just be cautious when it comes to that, just knowing how you would feel if somebody you know was speaking about you." 

Hall of Famer Kurt Warner made similar comments about Brady's planned transition from the playing field to the booth shortly after it was learned in 2022 that the seven-time Super Bowl champion and Fox Sports had agreed to a 10-year deal reportedly worth $375M. Brady is on track to replace fan-favorite analyst Greg Olsen months after Olsen won the Sports Emmy Award for Outstanding Personality/Event Analyst. 

"...You gotta be real as well," White continued. "You can’t sugarcoat it. If they’re not doing what they’re supposed to be doing, then say that. Which, I think he’ll be very blunt." 

Being "blunt" wasn't an issue for Brady during his Tampa Bay Buccaneers tenure that ran from 2020 through the end of January 2023. At a Fox Sports event earlier this month, he seemed to take a fun shot at Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott when the living legend said that he was curious to "see if [Prescott] can finally come through." 

Brady will make his regular-season announcing debut when the Cowboys play at the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 8.

"He’s pretty critical already of some of the younger generation and some of these younger quarterbacks, what they can get away with versus what he could get away with when he was playing a little bit earlier in his career," White added about Brady. "So I think it’ll be just finding that balance. That’s the hardest thing about being in the media."

Brady has reached out to media personalities such as Olsen, Scott Zolak and ESPN's Joe Buck and Troy Aikman about his next career step. Fair or not, some may expect Brady to be the GOAT on day one in the booth as he was throughout his playing career.