SAN ANTONIO – The Dallas Cowboys’ 2024 season opener may have even more intrigue and eyeballs than usual as FOX Sports has announced that their game versus the Cleveland Browns will be Tom Brady’s broadcasting debut.
Kickoff for the game is set for Sunday, Sept. 8 at 3:25 p.m. as America’s Game of the Week. FOX Sports released the decision prior to the NFL Schedule release, which will take place on Wednesday, May 15 at 7 p.m. on the NFL Network.
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Brady, a seven-time Super Bowl Champion and five-time Super Bowl MVP, made waves when he signed a 10-year, $375 million deal with FOX to be the network’s lead color commentator.
The Cowboys are coming off an NFC East championship and remain one of television’s biggest draws. The Browns made the playoffs last season and are believed to be a contender for the AFC North.
Cowboys. Browns. Week 1, in what will mark @TomBrady's FOX Sports broadcasting debut 🔥See you there.
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) May 13, 2024
📺: Catch the full 2024 @NFL Schedule release Wednesday, May 15 at 8p ET on @NFLNetwork pic.twitter.com/vq3mPc2uv5
“Amazing. Obviously having the Cowboys on is a huge draw,” Brady said to CBS Sports in response to how it’ll feel to call Cowboys-Browns. “As ‘America’s Team’ -- that’s going to get a little hard for me to say that all the time, understand they were the competition for a long time. But in this new role, I know the Cowboys, how important they are to this network, they got great storylines. C’mon, Dak Prescott, let’s see if he can finally come through.”
Early reports indicate that there will be no NFL game on CBS to compete with Cowboys-Browns, as CBS will be showing the US Open tennis tournament instead.
Brady should be able to provide ample knowledge in the game as he knows both teams well, going 7-0 against the Cowboys in his career and 7-2 against the Browns.
The Cowboys this offseason have signed veteran linebacker Eric Kendricks to bring experience to a young unit and brought in a familiar name in Mike Zimmer as the new defensive coordinator to replace the departed Dan Quinn. They also recently signed running back Ezekiel Elliott for a reunion and drafted Tyler Guyton out of the University of Oklahoma in the first round to bolster their offensive line.
The Browns resigned defensive lineman Za’Darius Smith, who played a key role on a Cleveland defense that ranked No. 1 in the league during the regular season. They also signed former Texas Longhorns Jordan Hicks and D’Onta Foreman to play key roles this season. The Browns did not have a first-round pick in this year’s NFL Draft as part of the Deshaun Watson trade with the Texans, but did acquire wide receiver Jerry Jeudy in a trade with the Denver Broncos.