Paul Finebaum praises Nick Saban, slams Tom Brady while comparing new broadcasters
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Paul Finebaum has seen plenty of football broadcasters come and go in his multi-decade career. In the 2024 season, two men often referred to as respective GOATs have entered the world of football broadcasting: Nick Saban and Tom Brady.
While Saban and Brady have notably different roles, Finebaum feels their debut seasons are fair to compare.
Saban linked with ESPN shortly after announcing his retirement. He debuted as an analyst during the 2024 NFL Draft. Saban also contributed to the SEC Network’s coverage of SEC Media Days before joining the College GameDay desk with Rece Davis, Desmond Howard, Pat McAfee, Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit.
Brady retired from the NFL in February 2023. He decided to wait until the 2024 season to begin his mega contract with FOX. Brady’s debut in FOX’s primary booth drew mixed reviews in Week 1.
In a recent interview with Awful Announcing, Finebaum was asked for his thoughts on Saban as a broadcaster. Finebaum praised Saban, contrasting him with Brady’s struggles.
“He’s brilliant,” Finebaum said of Saban. “I was prepared for him to be smart. He’s the best coach of all time. I was not quite ready to hear him be so analytical and precise.
“Sitting there listening to Saban and comparing that with Tom Brady, who’s in the same position as the greatest that’s ever played his position, stumble, fumble and waste the audience’s time with hackneyed clichés and tempered comments when good, well-founded experience and opinion would suffice has been fascinating. I don’t think Nick Saban could be off to a better start.”
Finebaum isn’t in the business of making friends, and he surely won’t be BFFs with Brady any time soon after calling out the former quarterback unprompted.
Paul Finebaum on Nick Saban’s early life as a broadcaster at ESPN and how it compares to Tom Brady’s Fox debut. pic.twitter.com/KJ7OeKXOgf
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) September 12, 2024
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
