Tom Brady’s comments on officials needing to ‘let the players play’ during the Philadelphia Eagles’ 55-23 NFC Championship victory over the Washington Commanders did not sit well with fans. The seven-time Super Bowl champion expressed his frustration with the officials’ involvement in the game while speaking to his FOX Sports broadcast partner Kevin Burkhardt.
“I do like the ability in the playoffs, I always felt this as a player: Let the players play,” Brady stated. “Let them go out there, be physical. I’m not saying with something egregious, but I don’t love seeing the refs factor into too many games. I want to see the players on the field get the decision in why they advance or not.”
Fans quickly took to social media to voice their incredulity at the 47-year-old’s criticism of the officials, with some suggesting that Brady had often benefitted from referee decisions throughout his career.
“Tom Brady saying he doesn’t want help from the officials is like Hulk Hogan saying he doesn’t like spray tanning machines,” one fan quipped.
A fan shared a gif of an incensed Brady, back when he was with the New England Patriots, berating a referee – a move that required intervention from another official to calm the fuming quarterback. The fan sarcastically remarked: “Did Tom Brady just say when he was playing he thought the refs should, ‘just let the players play’? ? ? Um that’s certainly his account of things I guess.”
Other enthusiasts brought up clips and images of Brady throughout his career engaging with officials, prompting one to comment wryly: “Tom Brady saying he doesn’t like games where the refs are too involved is so rich I think I just got diabetes.”
Brady has previously voiced his opinions on referees’ impact on games.
Following criticism of an unnecessary roughness call in the Kansas City Chiefs’ 23-14 victory over the Houston Texans, the legendary quarterback weighed in on the debate, siding with those who felt Patrick Mahomes had been favoured. “When quarterbacks become running backs, and they’re out of the pocket, they should lose their protection,” Brady opined on The Herd.
“We’re trying to protect the quarterbacks, but coaches are calling more quarterback runs than ever in the history of the game. So, who is protecting the quarterback? We’re trying to say the referees should do it?”
Brady didn’t mince words when discussing the current state of play, emphasizing player responsibility: “If you don’t wanna get hit, you can go down, you can run out of bounds. But you can’t, in essence, have the defensive player come in at half speed, and then you run over the defensive player because he’s afraid of getting a penalty.
“It’s a disservice to the game. It’s something that I’d hope people really address. Not that anyone’s trying to take advantage of the rules, but they’ve gone to a point where it does impact the quality of the game.”
Despite Brady’s critique, fans were treated to a stellar performance from the Eagles. Saquon Barkley, the star running back, left his mark on the match, rushing for 118 yards on 15 carries and securing three touchdowns.
This article originally appeared on Mirror US
