Jenny McCarthy broadcasts from the NFL draft: Jim Miller defends Tom Brady amid Deflategate

Bear down!

Jenny McCarthy is broadcasting Dirty, Sexy, Funny from the NFL draft, and the Chicago native is chatting with the Windy City’s football experts and famous fans.

McCarthy’s husband Donnie Wahlburg — a diehard New England Patriots supporter — and NFL Radio’s own Jim Miller stopped by Grant Park to discuss Thursday’s first-round picks, their favorite on-field memories and the Deflategate controversy.

Patriots star quarterback Tom Brady still stands accused of letting air out of his game balls during last year’s AFC Championship, and his team had several draft picks rescinded by the NFL due to the ongoing drama.

 

 

Miller, who hosts SiriusXM’s Movin’ the Chains and played for New England with Brady, called the scandal “pretty much nonsense.”

“Even when I played here in Chicago, I wanted the footballs inflated at the lower levels,” he said. “For me, it’s like throwing a baseball. You want to scuff up a baseball, you want it exactly how you want it when you’re throwing it. That’s your livelihood, that’s your job, and I wanted my football a certain way. Never had a problem with it. Tom Brady was the same way. I used to, when I played for the Patriots, help Tom pick out the footballs.”

Why didn’t other quarterbacks support him during the investigation?

“Tom’s got a pretty blessed life. He’s got a beautiful wife and he’s won a lot of championships,” Miller said of Brady, 38, who’s married to supermodel Gisele Bundchen. “But I can personally attest that he works hard. I mean, this guy has earned everything he’s gotten in the NFL, and he works his fanny off, he’s very disciplined, he’s very committed. I think there’s a lot of jealousy that goes on.”

Miller also discussed “misconceptions” about Patriots coach Bill Belichick.

“He’s extremely funny, he’s very witty, and he can coach any position on the field,” Miller said. “He’s very detail-oriented, but I think he does care extremely about his players. Having those relationships with his players is very important to him. He’s coached for so long, he knows everything. … He has that mental Rolodex and library where he can tap into any answer that he needs.”

 

Miller recalled how anxious he was during the 1994 draft, when he was ultimately chosen by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the sixth round. (He went on to play for the Atlanta Falcons, Jacksonville Jaguars, Detroit Lions, Chicago Bears, Tampa Bay Bucaneers, Patriots and New York Giants before retiring in 2005.)

“Back in those days, we didn’t have the cell phones,” said Miller, 45. “And my grandma kept calling the home phone. ‘What’s going on? Did your name get called yet?’ And I’m like, ‘Grandma, I need to keep this line free, don’t call.’ So by then, it’s the sixth round, I’m getting upset, but finally when my name was selected and [coach] Bill Cowher called me. He said, ‘Jim, you’re the Pittsburgh Steelers’ property, we’re happy to have you.’ It just made my day. It was awesome.”

McCarthy, 43, rocked a Bears jersey, leather jeans and foam claw for the draft — see the players’ best outfits here.

Listen to Dirty, Sexy, Funny with Jenny McCarthy on SiriusXM Stars (Ch. 109).

For a free 30-day trial, check out http://www.siriusxm.com/freeTrial.