Tom Brady may have violated his ownership restrictions when he criticized NFL officials for firing Brian Branch

When the NFL finalized its ownership agreement to give Tom Brady a minority stake in the Las Vegas Raiders, it put the league in an unusual position.

Brady, despite having a financial incentive for the Raiders' success, is the lead NFL analyst for Fox, where he is expected to serve as an impartial expert. To prevent Brady from displaying conflicts of interest, the league office has implemented several restrictions on what Brady can do and say on Fox.

And while the rules effectively made it impossible for Brady to be a successful analyst, the most glaring rule of all prevented him from criticizing NFL officials.

He may have broken that rule on Sunday.

During the Week 9 game between the Lions and Packers, Lions defensive back Brian Branch was ejected for a dangerous hit to the helmet. The call for exclusion apparently came from the league's office. And while the hit clearly warranted a 15-yard penalty, it was definitely questionable as a eliminable offense.

Trying to express this, Brady said, “I don't love this call at all.”

Now Brady may have found a loophole there by voicing the criticism be Feelings rather than saying an officer missed the call. But we'll have to see if the league really takes Brady's legitimate criticism there seriously.

Because if he can't speak freely, then what's the point of having him in the locker room at all?

More NFL!

Saquon Barkley pulled off a remarkable reverse hurdle during an absolutely magical Eagles run

Lip-reading fans were convinced that Dak Prescott had roused the Cowboys from the sidelines during their Week 9 loss

The Dallas Cowboys are cooked.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Tom Brady may have violated his ownership restrictions when he criticized NFL officials for firing Brian Branch