Tom Brady is now a minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders. But despite this, he will maintain the ability to vote on the NFL awards, which creates some controversy regarding how unbiased Brady may potentially be.
Brady, who is of course also a color analyst on Fox, is one of 50 voters who vote on the NFL Awards each and every season.
While some may think that Brady being able to vote on the awards as an NFL owner may create a conflict of interest, the Associated Press seemingly sees things differently.
In a statement to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Nicole Meir, the Media Relations Manager for the Associated Press detailed that the Associated Press is “confident that the integrity of the voting process will be respected by all voters.”
“As a credentialed media member who covers the NFL regularly, Tom Brady meets the requirement to vote for the AP NFL awards,” Meir told Florio. “We are confident that the integrity of the voting process will be respected by all voters.”
This decision is particularly interesting due to the Raiders having a candidate for the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award.
Raiders star tight end Brock Bowers has been excellent in his rookie season, hauling in 101 receptions for 1,067 yards and four touchdowns.
Due to his new role as the Raiders part-owner, would Brady potentially cast his vote for Bowers instead of someone like Jayden Daniels or Bo Nix due to a bias?
Only time will tell. But regardless, fans are somewhat concerned that this may be the case.
“The very idea the NFL is trusting Tom Brady to be fair and impartial is deflating,” one NFL fan wrote on X.
“Why did he get a vote in his first year covering the league?” asked another fan.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.