Roger Goodell makes feelings on Tom Brady conflict-of-interest controversy clear

Earlier this week, Tom Brady somewhat defiantly lashed out at critics who say his serving as a minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders while he's Fox's lead in-game NFL analyst gives the Raiders unfair advantages. 

For the latest edition of the CNBC Sport newsletter with Alex Sherman, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell spoke with Sherman about the conflict-of-interest takes that continue to hover over Brady and the Raiders. 

Roger Goodell reminds teams how they can deal with Tom Brady

"Teams have the right to say whatever they want to," Goodell said about what Brady learns while participating in pregame production meetings with players and coaches. "They don’t have to disclose any information if they think it’s a conflict of interest. Teams don’t need to say anything. Sometimes they don’t say anything to somebody who’s not [a minority owner]. We get a lot of former players that are in [broadcast meetings] that are close to their former teams. I think our teams are pretty smart about saying, 'I’m not sharing something with him.'" 

New York Giants safety Tyler Nubin offered similar advice last week when he said that teams concerned about Brady's two roles simply shouldn't "tell him (expletive)." More recently, Mike Sando of The Athletic noted that future Hall of Famer J.J. Watt has been allowed to call two Pittsburgh Steelers games for CBS this season. The Steelers feature defensive star T.J. Watt, J.J.'s brother. 

In the latest edition of his weekly newsletter, Brady called critics of his roles "paranoid and distrustful." He also suggested such individuals are "blinded by distrust." 

Could Roger Goodell ask Tom Brady to pick a lane?

Some have wondered if Goodell could eventually step in and essentially force Brady to "pick a lane" regarding the Raiders and Fox. It doesn't sound like Goodell is planning to go down that road anytime soon. 

"Where’s the conflict? He’s not hanging around in the facilities," Goodell added about Brady. "We don’t allow that."

Goodell works for NFL team owners, and those owners reportedly "know that Brady calling the games is a good thing" for everybody involved. One wonders what those owners will have to say about Brady's NFL relationships if the Raiders eventually emerge as a legitimate championship contender under Brady's watch.