Adam Schefter’s fury with Pat McAfee studio costs ESPN Insider in race to break Free Agency news

NFL insider Adam Schefter was visibly irate on The Pat McAfee Show over the internet connection inside the ESPN studio.

In a frantic few opening hours as the NFL opened up for business in the league’s legal negotiating period, ESPN’s senior insider assigned blame to the Wi-Fi connectivity – or lack thereof – when trying to post various free agency moves to social media.

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The comments criticizing the Wi-Fi were made when Schefter was announcing that former Philadelphia Eagles linebacker was signing a four-year, $120 million deal with the Carolina Panthers.

 “Jaelan Phillips, a four-year, $120 million deal with the Carolina Panthers,” Schefter said in Thunder Dome.

“That just gets done, one of the best pass rushers in the market. This is going to have some implications here as there are a lot of people in the pass rush market.

“By the way, the Wi-Fi in this room is not working very well. I’m trying to get things out here, and it’s not working.”

Host McAfee fired back and responded, “No way. It’s 1000-up, 1000-down Schefty. It might be your stuff not ours.”

With hundreds of players around the NFL entering the free agency market, having the connectivity to be able to break the news first is paramount.

The likes of Schefter, Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport are also competing amongst each other to break the news first.

Last year, ESPN ran a special version of SportsCenter on ESPN2 featuring Schefter which ran at the same time as The Pat McAfee Show.

This year, though, McAfee’s show stood alone, with Schefter live on air, as well as being joined by insider Peter Schrager and former quarterback-turned-analyst Dan Orlovsky on hand to break down the deals further.

NFL spends over $1 billion on free agents in first hour

Free agency got off to a hot start, with top free agents coming off the board as soon as the official tampering period began at noon on Monday.

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Super Bowl LX MVP Kenneth Walker III secured their top running back target as they signed a three-year, $43 million deal with the Kansas City Chiefs, while wide receiver Alec Pierce opted to stay loyal to the Indianapolis Colts, signing a four-year, $114 million deal.

Travis Kelce also announced his intentions to return to the Chiefs for Year 14, ending all speculation of retirement.

The Miami Dolphins won the Malik Willis sweepstakes, with the former Green Bay Packers back-up quarterback reuniting with GM Jon-Eric Sullivan and head coach Jeff Hafley.

This news came just hours after the Dolphins announced that they were releasing Tua Tagovailoa, having to absorb a record $99 million in dead cap hit as a result.

Another big name that found a new home on Monday was that of Tyler Linderbaum, who reset the center market when he penned a record four-year, $81 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders.

Meanwhile, veteran wide receiver Mike Evans said goodbye to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after 12 seasons as he joined the San Francisco 49ers on a three-year deal worth a reported $60.4 million.

In the first hour alone, the NFL had reportedly handed out over $1 billion in contracts to free agents.

That number is expected to rise significantly with huge names such as edge rusher Trey Hendrickson, quarterback Kyler Murray and linebacker Devin Lloyd still on the board.

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