{"id":808829,"date":"2026-03-12T21:15:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T21:15:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/808829\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T21:15:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T21:15:16","slug":"adam-schefter-ian-rapoport-feud-thawing-with-merger","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/808829\/","title":{"rendered":"Adam Schefter-Ian Rapoport feud ‘thawing’ with merger"},"content":{"rendered":"

ESPN\u2019s senior NFL insider Adam Schefter and NFL Network\u2019s lead insider Ian Rapoport could form an alliance at the Worldwide Leader after nearly two decades as industry rivals. <\/p>\n

There\u2019s been a \u201cthawing of the ice\u201d between Schefter and Rapoport in recent weeks as ESPN\/Disney will absorb the contracts of NFL Network talent in a merger beginning April 1, per Front Office Sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One indication of that came when Schefter retweeted Rapoport\u2019s story that All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce is returning to the Chiefs<\/a> for a 14th season on Monday.<\/p>\n

\"NFLNFL Network Insider reporter Ian Rapoport during the NFL Scouting Combine on March 2, 2022, at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, IN. Icon Sportswire via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Schefter, 59, reportedly makes approximately $9 million per year under his current deal with ESPN.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rapoport\u2019s NFL Network contract reportedly expires in May<\/a>.<\/p>\n

After that, ESPN will have to decide on Rapoport\u2019s future and negotiate a potential new agreement. <\/p>\n

Rapoport, 46, could remain the top insider on Disney\u2019s version of NFL Network, opposite Schefter on ESPN, as noted by FOS.<\/p>\n

However, they could dominate the NFL insider market by joining forces. <\/p>\n

ESPN reportedly agreed to take on NFL Network talent for the remainder of their current deals before it can negotiate new agreements. <\/p>\n

\"ESPNESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter on set ahead of Super Bowl LIX on February 7, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Getty Images<\/p>\n

ESPN\u2019s $3 billion purchase of NFL Network<\/a> \u2014 and other assets including the RedZone channel and NFL Fantasy Football \u2014 was finalized as of Jan. 2026. <\/p>\n

The NFL received a 10 percent equity stake in ESPN as part of the deal. <\/p>\n

Some NFL Network on-air talent are in \u201cpanic mode<\/a>\u201d as their future is uncertain with the April 1 merger approaching. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe NFL spent so many years cutting that they\u2019ve shaved past the bone at NFL Network,\u201d a source told FOS. \u201cMaybe ESPN will finally put some real firepower behind it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rapoport has been NFL Network\u2019s lead insider since July of 2013.<\/p>\n

Schefter has worked as an NFL insider for ESPN since 2009, and appears across the a variety of programs including \u201cNFL Live\u201d and \u201cSunday NFL Countdown.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ESPN\u2019s senior NFL insider Adam Schefter and NFL Network\u2019s lead insider Ian Rapoport could form an alliance at…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":808830,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5],"tags":[4191,16207,102701,7,49,48,6,126,9,10,203],"class_list":{"0":"post-808829","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-ncaa-football","8":"tag-adam-schefter","9":"tag-disney","10":"tag-epsn","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-ncaa","13":"tag-ncaa-football","14":"tag-nfl","15":"tag-nfl-network","16":"tag-sports","17":"tag-sports-entertainment","18":"tag-sports-media"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808829","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=808829"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/808829\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/808830"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=808829"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=808829"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=808829"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}