Tom Brady's Netflix special 'broke the mold on censorship,' ex-NFL star Shawne Merriman says

Brady roasted by friends, comedians on Sunday night

Former NFL star Shawne Merriman tuned into Netflix’s "Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady" on Sunday night and thought the world of it.

Merriman told Fox News Digital he thought it was one of the best roasts he’s ever seen and praised Netflix for putting it together, given the sharp jokes that were hurled toward the seven-time Super Bowl champion.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Tom Brady before the roast

Tom Brady is shown at "The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady" at Kia Forum in Inglewood, California, on May 5, 2024. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

"I put on Twitter that I give nothing but big ups and a tremendous amount of respect to Netflix, because in today’s society where everything is so censored … what people don’t know is when you go sit in those boardrooms when you’re coming up with this material, you got to go through so many checks and balances," Merriman told Fox News Digital. "For them to clear this and let this happen live, I think they broke the mold on censorship."

"I think they broke the mold on what’s OK now. It’s OK for comedy. It’s OK to crack jokes. I mean, there was everything in there from race jokes and gender jokes. It’s like man, let’s get back to that – where comedy is comedy and it’s OK. Nobody was offended and it was a great time. It was the best roast I think I’ve ever seen in my life."

TOM BRADY APPEARS ANGRY WITH JEFF ROSS' ROBERT KRAFT JOKE DURING NETFLIX ROAST: 'DON'T SAY THAT S--- AGAIN'

Shawne Merriman at the Fanatics party

Shawne Merriman attends Michael Rubin's Fanatics Super Bowl party at the Marquee Nightclub at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on Feb. 10, 2024. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

Brady was on the receiving end of jokes about his divorce from Gisele Bündchen, break-up with Bridget Moynahan, the crypto debacle and other things.

"I think he GOAT’d himself on and off the field, and to be at that level, to open yourself up, you just show a different level of humility," Merriman added. "Especially, his divorce being public, and they had to joke about the crypto."

"It’s life, man. It was so refreshing to see somebody of his caliber sit back and get decked on my everybody. It was just so awesome to see, man. I had a great time watching it."

Tom Brady at the Forum

Tom Brady attends the Netflix Is A Joke Festival's "The Greatest Roast Of All Time: Tom Brady" at Kia Forum in Inglewood, California, on May 5, 2024. (Monica Schipper/Getty Images)

Robert Kraft, Bill Belichick, Dana White and Rob Gronkowski were among those making jokes at Brady’s expense.

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.

Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.

Authored by Ryan Gaydos via FoxNews May 6th 2024