Tale of the Tape: Tedy Bruschi vs. Ray Lewis, as Analysts

Patriots icon Tedy Bruschi works as an analyst for ESPN. The Boston Globe

By Jack Andrade

January 8, 2015

3 minutes to read

Tedy Bruschi. Ray Lewis. Few linebackers were as vital to their respective teams as Bruschi and Lewis were in the early 2000’s.

Now, with their former franchises set to square off in the playoffs for the first time since Lewis’ retirement following the 2012 season, it’s time to take this competition to the next level.

Which former NFL great does a better job as an ESPN analyst? Let’s turn it over to the tape.

Round 1: “Emotion’’

Bruschi Cries on Set with Patriots owner Kraft

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Lewis Upset About Ray Rice Situation

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Edge: Bruschi

Sometimes less is more when it comes to the spoken word, and watching Bruschi try and fail to hold back tears throughout this segment was a fitting example of how much he loved the Patriots organization.

“I’d rather right the ship than jump the ship,’’ Bruschi states, eloquently explaining why he chose to be a Patriot for life.

Lewis does a tremendous job selling the hurt he feels watching his friends and his former colleagues get caught in the Ray Rice incident and the possible attempted cover up. Then he goes and ruins the whole thing with an incredible string of poorly chosen words.

“Some things you can cover up, and then there’s some things you can’t,’’ Lewis says. I mean, come on. He then goes on to talk about the reputation he built as a Raven. He never criticizes anyone but Ray Rice. It falls apart in his lap.

Round 2: “Passion’’

Bruschi: Super Bowl > Hall of Fame

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Lewis: Brooks Penalty on Brees “Embarassing’’

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Edge: Lewis

It’s tough to pick against Bruschi here, because he makes some great points about why he’d rather be a champion than a Hall of Famer. This contest is more about Lewis seizing the moment than Bruschi stumbling in his analysis.

This is Lewis at his best. As a recently retired player and unofficial ambassador for the players in the league, he has the unique perspective as someone who played and thrived both before and after the NFL finally got serious about player safety and concussions.

There’s no doubt Lewis speaks for a majority of NFL defensive players when he vents about how helpless the new rules make defensive players feel. Active players risk fines and other disciplinary measures if they speak out. By grabbing the mantle and making his case, Lewis fit the role he should be playing full time at ESPN- the bridge between the players and the audience.

The icing on the cake is Lewis pulling out his credit card and offering to pay half of Ahmad Brooks’ fine (which he actually did). That was the exclamation point on Lewis’ most impactful and worthwhile segment as an analyst.

Round 3: Reflection on Former Team

Bruschi: Brady is the Franchise

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Lewis on Ravens: I don’t know who will be the new leader

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Edge: Bruschi

Is Bruschi sticking up for his former quarterback? Probably. He definitely missed an easy opportunity to be critical of Brady. But at least he formed an opinion and stuck to it. He clearly did some research. He used other examples from around the league. He explained how he thought differently as an analyst than he would have as a player.

Lewis spends 5 minutes making non-commital predictions about the Ravens. He didn’t name anyone as a potential leader. He wouldn’t say whether Joe Flacco was the best QB in the NFL or not. He wouldn’t even explain why he hadn’t cleaned out his locker yet. It was like hearing a story from a wise old family member, only 5 minutes later you’re struggling to figure out what the point of the story was. Bruschi takes round 3 and the matchup, 2-1.

What do you think? Bruschi or Lewis, who is the better ESPN analyst?