Is This the Most Awkward Tom Brady Interview Ever?

Tom Brady Photo by Steven Senne / AP

Fans and sports writers alike know that it’s a futile effort trying to get Tom Brady to reveal anything remotely newsworthy with regards to the never-ending Deflategate saga.

Whatever he could possibly say about the controversy he’s already said—which isn’t a whole lot. Still, that hasn’t stopped some reporters from grilling the Patriots quarterback over the scandal, even in the months after he successfully beat his suspension en route to a perfect 9-0 start to the 2015 season.

That’s why it should come as no surprise that Brady’s latest interview with Chuck Klosterman for GQ doesn’t break any new ground. On the contrary, it comes across as extremely awkward.

The lengthy profile, which is part of the magazine’s “Men of the Year” issue, starts off nicely enough. Not only does it praise Brady as the “greatest quarterback of all time,” but it also ponders a possible political run for the Patriots star (although he says, “There is a 0.000 chance of me ever wanting to do that”).

Things, of course, quickly segue into Deflategate territory, as the writer details a tense phone call exchange with Brady,  which even Klosterman admits was a bit awkward. Here’s a snippet of it below.

But what you’re suggesting is that the reality of this is subjective. It’s not. Either you were “generally aware” of this or you weren’t.
I understand what you’re trying to get at. I think that my point is: I’m not adding any more to this debate. I’ve already said a lot about this—

Tom, you haven’t. I wouldn’t be asking these questions if you had. There’s still a lack of clarity on this.
Chuck, go read the transcript from a five-hour appeal hearing. It’s still ongoing.

I realize it’s still ongoing. But what is your concern? That by answering this question it will somehow—
I’ve already answered all those questions. I don’t want to keep revisiting what’s happened over the last eight months. Whether it’s you, whether it’s my parents, whether it’s anybody else. If that’s what you want to talk about, then it’s going to be a very short interview.

The rest of their chat is mostly filled with variations of the same questions and answers, with each prompt and response more awkward to read than the next.

The issue isn’t Klosterman trying to get a straight answer out of Brady over the scandal, but it’s the idea that he thinks he can succeed where hundreds of other sports writers have failed.

Since any good reporter with access to the biggest name in sports would do the same, you can’t really blame him for feeling compelled to ask about the controversy. However, there is no one on the planet, other than maybe Gisele, who will ever get a candid response about Deflategate. Attempting to do so months after most of the dust has settled seems like a waste of interview time.

Instead of asking the same questions over and over again, it would have been more productive asking him about other subjects he’s usually tight-lipped about, like whether he’d welcome a domestic abuser as a teammate. Sure, the answer may be a version of “no comment,” but there’s a better chance of getting him to open up about that than deflated footballs.