During the Monday Night Football matchup featuring the Las Vegas Raiders and Los Angeles Chargers, Raiders minority owner Tom Brady was shown in the coaches' booth with a headset on as the game progressed.
ESPN's Peter Schrager, who was on sideline reporter duties during the game, then reported that Las Vegas' offensive coordinator, Chip Kelly, told him that he and Brady meet three times a week to go over the game plan.
Despite this, Raiders' head coach Pete Carroll denied the report following the game, saying, "We have conversations, I talk to Tom, Chip talks to Tom regularly. We have a tremendous asset. And we all get along and respect each other. We just talk about life and football. He has great insight, so we're lucky to have him as an owner."
Raiders Could Be in Hot Water if Brady Report is Accurate
While Carroll denied the report, it's hard to believe Schrager, a respected NFL journalist, would make something like that up for a sideline report.
Could it be the 74-year-old trying to cover the team's tracks? Brady, a commentator for Fox, meets with other teams virtually for production meetings ahead of broadcasts on a weekly basis.
It would certainly be a conflict of interest if the Raiders' minority owner were meeting with teams and gathering information to relay it back to the team he has an ownership stake in.
There is zero indication that anything like that has happened thus far, but the NFL did just change those rules around for Brady specifically, who wasn't able to participate in production meetings at all in 2024.
While Brady and the Raiders have been found to do nothing wrong, it is something for the NFL to keep an eye on as the seven-time Super Bowl champion's broadcasting and ownership career continues.