Tom Brady Criticized for Saying Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl Accidental Flash Was ‘Good Thing’ for NFL

Tom Brady just shared some interesting thoughts on Janet Jackson’s accident flash at the Super Bowl halftime show nearly 20 years ago. During Monday’s episode of the Let’s Go! podcast, the 45-year-old recently retired quarterback talked about that Super Bowl that took place in 2004, Brady was playing in the game and went on to lead the New England Patriots over the Carolina Panthers. But for the halftime show, Brady said he “didn’t see much” when the wardrobe malfunction happened. 

 “I’d much rather not see it when I’m playing,” Brady said, per PEOPLE. Brady went on to say that the incident helped the NFL in terms of viewership. “I think in the end, it was probably a good thing for the NFL because everyone got to talk about it, and it was just more publicity and more publicity for halftime shows. Is any publicity bad publicity? That’s what they say, so, who knows?” His comments led to people on social media firing back at him. 

“It wasn’t a great thing because it scarred (sic) Janet for life especially it affected her career as well,” one fan wrote. Others said Brady didn’t understand the impact the incident had on Jackson’s career. 

“So a black woman’s career and reputation is damaged and she was taunted for a number of years by the mainstream media but you know what, it was good for the NFL?!” another person added. “Clearly too many knocks to his head.”

The wardrobe malfunction happened when Justin Timberlake pulled off a part of Jackson’s costume at the end of the song. The part he pulled revealed Jackson’s right breast which included a sun-shape nipple shield, and the incident lasted less than a second. Jackson and Timberlake issued apologies, and CBS was fined $550,000. In a 2006 interview with Oprah Winfrey, Jackson felt like Timberlake left her hanging “to a certain degree.”

In 2021, Timberlake issued an apology to Jackson. “I understand that I fell short in these moments and in many others and benefited from a system that condones misogyny and racism,” Timberlake said at that time. “I specifically want to apologize to Britney Spears and Janet Jackson both individually, because I care for and respect these women and I know I failed.”

Jackson took a lot of heat for the incident as then-Viacom CEO Leslie Moonves ordered that her singles and music videos be blacklisted from all properties. For Timberlake, it didn’t affect him in terms of his career as he headline the Super Bowl halftime show in 2018. This year’s Super Bowl halftime show featured Rihanna and the only shocking thing to come out of the performance is her revealing she’s pregnant with her second child.