NFL chiefs have decided to not issue Tom Brady with a punishment after the former New England Patriots superstar was critical of a divisive call during the Green Bay Packers-Detroit Lions clash.

The seven-time Super Bowl winner resumed his role as lead analyst for Fox Sports and was not shy in revealing his thoughts on the ejection of Lions ace Brian Branch. The safety was penalized for his hit on the defenseless Green Bay wide receiver Bo Melton during the second quarter.

Brady admitted that he did not approve of the call of the officials to eject Branch in this instance as he questioned the extent of the player’s “intent”. The football icon admitted: “I don’t love that call at all. Obviously it’s a penalty, but to me, there has to be serious intent in a game like this.”

However, the retired quarterbacks remarks did bring into question whether he had broken NFL rules which prevent the Las Vegas Raiders co-owner from “publicly criticizing game officials and other clubs”. Now, an NFL spokesperson has confirmed that the league will not be issuing any punishment for his comments.

Brian McCarthy said: “The concern would be if Tom was egregiously critical of officiating or called into question the integrity of an official or the crew. That did not occur in this instance.”

Brady’s contributions on the mic have divided public opinion since he assumed his post as analsyst with Fox at the beginning of the new NFL season. Among those who have been unconvinced with his efforts is Bill Simmons, who said of his showing during the Lions-Vikings game: “I thought Brady was just bad today. He just doesn’t tell me enough.

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Tom Brady has escaped punishment for his comments during the Green Bay Packers-Detroit Lions clash. 

Tom Brady has escaped punishment for his comments during the Green Bay Packers-Detroit Lions clash.  ( 

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Sam Hodde/Getty Images)

“I think he’s being poorly produced, is where I’ve landed,” he continued. “Because I think whatever they’re telling him to do, it’s not working. I don’t feel like I’m watching the game with him. He comes in in the beginning, he’s got this fake energy … none of it feels genuine to me.”

“Now we’ve had nine weeks, and I feel like he’s gotten worse than he was four, five weeks ago. Now it’s like he’s gotten too many notes. But when we get to the playoffs and there’s only one game on, it’s going to be pretty glaring when we’re watching all these other playoff games.”

Simmons implored studio executives to re-think their strategy with Brady, adding: “I really think they need to hit the reset button, clear the cache, start over, and just be like, ‘We overloaded you with too much stuff.’ Get back to the basics. Just watch the game with (Kevin) Burkhardt, tell us what you see, come into the game with five, six things that you know you want to hit.”