NFL legend Tom Brady will return to Foxborough to call the marquee Week 9 clash between the New England Patriots and the Green Bay Packers. Fox Sports has made a big deal out of their lead color commentator returning to New England to call a game featuring the franchise he helped build into a dynasty during his playing days.

Not everyone was amused by Fox Sports’ promotion of Brady’s New England return, and recently, ESPN’s Chris Russo slammed the network for shifting the focus to the seven-time Super Bowl champion.

ESPN ‘First Take’ Contributor Slams Fox for Tom Brady Pats Return Focus

During Wednesday’s segment of the “First Take” show, Russo expressed his surprise at the network’s overly promotional approach towards Brady’s Gillette Stadium return.

“I was shocked that Fox’s big deal for Sunday’s game on Minnesota and Green Bay when they promoted their game this week was the fact that Tom Brady is going back to Foxborough to call the Packers game against the Patriots,” Russo said.

He said, “Number one, he played there as a Buc, so the idea that this is a big deal now that Tom’s in the booth and that’s a good game, 4:25 on Sunday afternoon.”

Brady reportedly signed a mammoth 10-year, $375 million deal to become Fox Sports’ lead NFL color commentator alongside play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt. The former Pats icon is in the third year of his nascent broadcasting career and has received mixed reviews for his commentary and game analysis.

On Wednesday, Russo was further annoyed that Fox was ignoring such a high-profile clash between quarterbacks like Jordan Love and Drake Maye to focus on Brady instead.

“Fox’s promotion all week is the fact that Tom’s going back to Foxborough; who the hell cares? I don’t care. Call the game on the moon,” Russo added.

He continued, “This is the dumbest thing in the world. And it’s not Tom’s fault; he didn’t ask for this. How is Fox thinking, ‘We’re gonna promote Jordan Love-Drake Maye, Packers-Pats, 4:25 Sunday afternoon, we’re gonna tell the country make sure you watch because Tom’s calling the game?'”

“He’s not going down on the field. The Patriots fans couldn’t care less. They don’t know who Brady is, they got Maye at quarterback….. He’s in a secluded booth with the windows closed. I was absolutely shocked and they didn’t do it once, they did it 30 times on Sunday afternoon… That was ridiculous; I’m a sports fan. I wanna watch the game because it’s a big game. Not because Tom’s calling it.”

Brady cemented himself as the NFL’s poster boy during his 20-season career in New England, during which he won three NFL MVP Awards, two NFL Offensive Player of the Year Awards, and earned three First-team All-Pro and three Second-team All-Pro nods.

Due to his role in helping the Pats win six Super Bowl titles, Brady was also named to the NFL’s 2000s and 2010s All-Decade teams. The iconic quarterback won his final Super Bowl ring in February 2021, capping the 2020 season when he left the Patriots for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, where he ended his career.

During an appearance on Tuesday’s segment of “The Herd” show with Colin Cowherd, Brady detailed the emotional aspect of his return to Gillette Stadium and spoke glowingly of the Patriots’ organization.

He will return on the same weekend his former teammate, tight end Rob Gronkowski, is inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame on Saturday. Gronkowski will then be recognized during halftime of the Packers game.