Tom Brady’s long-awaited debut as an NFL broadcaster is finally in the books.

The Cowboys blew out the Browns 33-17 Sunday afternoon in Cleveland, as Brady called his first game in Fox’s No.1 booth alongside play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt. 

While the seven-time Super Bowl champion didn’t make any jaw-dropping missteps calling the action, he also didn’t exactly have a Tony Romo-esque premiere performance. Front Office Sports media expert Michael McCarthy believes Brady has plenty of room to grow; you can read his full review here. 

One highlight for Brady came in the first half when Fox returned from a commercial break and Brady broke down how disruptive Browns defensive end Myles Garrett can be, just before the pass rusher forced a Dak Prescott fumble on the very next play. 

“It’s been quite a journey,” Brady said at the beginning of the game as Burkhardt welcomed him to the team. Next week, Fox will once again assign Brady to a Cowboys game for his second bite at the apple, with the network’s No. 1 team heading to Dallas in Week 2 for the Cowboys’ home opener against the Saints.

Meanwhile, in the 1 p.m. ET game window Sunday, Greg Olsen—the man Brady replaced in Fox’s top NFL booth—made his debut with new partner Joe Davis on the network’s No. 2 team

Raiders Stake

Before Brady made his TV debut, NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport reported Sunday morning that the Fox broadcaster’s bid to become a minority owner of the Raiders “​​is on its way to approval.” A formal vote could be taken at owners’ meetings in October or December, but the “expectation is that Brady’s approval is final by the time the 2024 season concludes,” according to Rapoport.

The NFL has imposed severe restrictions on Brady as a broadcaster due to his Raiders ownership interest. He is not allowed to attend production meetings with players or coaches, or watch practices—both of which are commonplace for other NFL game analysts and play-by-play announcers.

No American man or woman took home a singles title at the US Open, but the tournament surpassed 1 million attendees for the first time in history.

Top-seeded Jannik Sinner beat No. 12 Taylor Fritz in straight sets Sunday. It was the first time an American man had made a Grand Slam final since Wimbledon 2009, when Andy Roddick lost to Roger Federer. 

Chiefs stars Travis Kelce and Patrick Mahomes were in the crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium, three days after their NFL season-opening victory over the Ravens. Of course, Kelce was accompanied by girlfriend Taylor Swift, who was also in Kansas City Thursday night.

The final US Open attendance number was 1,048,669, up 8% from last year. That number encompassed fans who showed up for events before the main draw, which drew 832,640 fans over the past two weeks.

Sinner and women’s champion Aryna Sabalenka each earned $3.6 million for their US Open victories, part of the record $75 million tournament purse.

Multiple NFL players wore Guardian Caps over their helmets Sunday, marking the first time the equipment aimed at limiting concussions has been used during the regular season.

Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers and Steelers guard James Daniels were spotted wearing Guardian Caps—padded shells that fit over the standard football helmets—in the early Sunday afternoon window of Week 1 NFL games. Both Guardian Caps attempted to mimic the designs on New England’s and Pittsburgh’s standard helmets, as opposed to the logo-less shells players used league-wide during practices.

Guardian Caps have been used during NFL practices since 2022 but were only approved for game use this offseason. In the preseason, Colts running back Jonathan Taylor was the most notable player who tested out Guardian Caps in August exhibition games. Taylor did not wear a Guardian Cap during the Colts’ home opener against the Texans. The Steelers’ James also tested the Guardian Cap during the preseason and evidently liked what he experienced enough to sport it Sunday.

The worst-drawing team in MLB is now facing a very different attendance challenge. 

The A’s, playing their last season in Oakland before relocating to Sacramento and then Las Vegas, are averaging about 9,700 tickets sold per game this season. A cumulative attendance likely to end at around 800,000 for the full 2024 home schedule is on track to be one of MLB’s lowest figures for any team in the last 45 years, except for seasons impacted by work stoppages or the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Oakland’s final home game, Sept. 26 against the Rangers, presents the team with the opposite problem. The game is already a sellout, with resale ticket prices beginning at more than $100 each. Some A’s fans are now pushing the club to open “Mount Davis,” the elevated outfield seating portion of the Oakland Coliseum constructed in the 1990s for the return of the NFL’s Raiders, and colloquially named for that team’s late owner, Al Davis. Making that area—closed for MLB games since it was used for the 2019 wild-card game won by the Rays—available to fans would add more than 8,000 seats.

“For one night, we will put aside our differences and come together to soak in one last game at the Coliseum,” a group of fans wrote recently in an open letter to the team. “We want this final game to be a memorable experience for everyone involved.”

Team Response

The team has not responded directly to the letter, or agreed in any way to open the space, only saying in a statement that “we are committed to providing the best experience possible for your fans. For the final game, we will have increased levels of staffing, including the parking lot, and extra security in place.”

Additionally, the rest of the third level of the Coliseum is typically barren, given the club’s low attendance. The fan group has sought to address the operational issues of staffing the upper deck, pledging dozens of volunteers for that final game.

“We know this area hasn’t been used in years, and that it has not been maintained,” the fan letter continues. “We also understand that it will take some effort to make it usable for one last game. That’s why we are offering our help.”

More Challenges Down the Road

While the late-schedule issues continue in Oakland, the A’s are facing more trouble down the road in both their temporary home in Sacramento and long-term destination of Las Vegas. A planned ballpark along the Las Vegas Strip still is awaiting a finalized financing plan. The interim, three-year stay at Sutter Health Park, meanwhile, remains a separate source of frustration with the player and agent communities, particularly around the artificial turf field that is there and the triple-digit temperatures common there in the summer. 

The turf field is seen as a necessity since the A’s will be sharing the ballpark with the Sacramento River Cats, the Giants’ top minor-league affiliate

“Right now, some of the issues with the A’s playing in Sacramento are frankly a collective bargaining nightmare,” agent Paul Cobbe told the San Francisco Chronicle. “When the Blue Jays were in Buffalo that was force majeure because of COVID. They could change a bunch of collective bargaining stuff immediately. That’s not the case here.”