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via Imago

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via Imago

“I told FOX: ‘If I could just die on the show, think about the ratings, right?’” Terry Bradshaw, always thinking like a quarterback, even about his final play. He’s fumbled play names, butchered pronunciations, and once tried doing Southern accents on national television. But he knows his time is almost over. “I love what I’m doing. But we all get old and we’re going to get kicked out,” he said a few months ago. Still, Bradshaw kept showing up on your NFL Sundays like clockwork.

For over four decades, the man with four rings and zero filters has been part of the football furniture. From CBS Sports in the 1980s to the big Fox desk, Bradshaw built his second legacy on a different kind of gridiron – broadcast television. But now, at 76, even Terry’s legendary enthusiasm is starting to compete with other passions: horses, casseroles, and a cowboy hat that doesn’t come off unless there’s brisket involved.

This summer, Bradshaw isn’t suiting up for another NFL debate. He’s back in the saddle – literally. He and his wife Tammy were all smiles in a recent Instagram post from the Palomino World Show, holding up medals and wearing matching cowboy hats like prom king and queen of the ranch circuit. Tammy rocked a hot pink blazer. Terry went full blue. They looked like country royalty. The caption? “Fun day showing at The Palomino World Show!”

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This isn’t a one-off for the Bradshaws. They’ve been longtime backers and exhibitors with the Palomino Horse Breeders Association (PHBA), even matching donations up to $50,000 this year through a ‘Bradshaw Challenge’ fundraiser. Last time they were here in 2022, they got the President’s Special Service Award – a painting of Terry’s first world champ horse named ‘Influential.’ Not a bad flex. 

If the cowboy hats didn’t give it away, the cookbook will. Coming September 16, The Bradshaw Family Cookbook is ready to tackle game day menus. Think spicy pork canoes, monkey bread, and grilled tomahawk steaks. The whole crew’s in it – Tammy, Rachel, Lacey, Noah – plus Terry’s signature Southern storytelling. It’s not just a family recipe drop – it’s a full-blown rebrand. But while Terry’s investing time in horses and homemade cornbread, the NFL broadcasting world is galloping in a different direction – toward youth, polish, and, well, Tom Brady.

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As Tom Brady booms, Terry Bradshaw fades quietly

Fox already went all-in on TB12 with a 10-year, $375 million megadeal. After a wobbly start, Brady found his groove in the booth, wrapping his rookie broadcast season with high praise for his Super Bowl commentary and solid chemistry with Kevin Burkhardt. But here’s the kicker: Brady won’t call another Super Bowl until 2029 due to the NFL’s rotating network rights. That’s fine for Brady. He’s 47 and just getting started.

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As Tom Brady rises, is it time for Terry Bradshaw to hang up his broadcasting boots?

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But for Terry Bradshaw? That timeline is a problem. Speaking at a Fox presser before this year’s Super Bowl, Bradshaw put it bluntly: “I told my wife before I left the room a while ago… I got two years left at Fox. I’m 76. It’s a young man’s game.” He said it with a chuckle, but the subtext was loud – he knows time’s running out. “I said if we can get to the next Super Bowl, I’ll be 80. I think that’s time and that’s 80 years old and that’s pushing it.”

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The Jimmy Johnson retirement this March didn’t help. Johnson, 81, finally stepped away from the desk after 31 years. Bradshaw might be next, unless Fox hands him an extension. But that seems unlikely when you’ve got Brady in the wings, already on the payroll and stealing the spotlight with avocado-smooth delivery.

Terry says he’s not leaving until they drag him out or until he drops dead on live TV for the ratings. Seriously, he pitched that idea. But ratings or not, the saddle seems comfier than the studio chair these days. The NFL may have been his first love, but now it’s all about PHBA medals and Sunday potlucks.

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As Tom Brady rises, is it time for Terry Bradshaw to hang up his broadcasting boots?

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