ESPN ties down first NFL Network star since $3bn merger amid TV deal crisis

Ian Rapoport is reportedly closing in on a muti-year ESPN contract.

The NFL Network insider has joined forces with former rival Adam Schefter since ESPN’s equity deal with the NFL went through earlier this year.

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That saw the broadcaster take on a host of contracted talent, including Rapoport.

Front Office Sports is now reporting that the 46-year-old is close to finalizing a deal with ESPN that will make him the first NFL Network talent to be tied down since the $3 billion merger.

It had been claimed that Rapoport was being viewed as a potential “succession plan” for 59-year-old Schfter.

FOS insists that the plan is to roll with what the network regards as the two top NFL insiders under one roof.

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand agrees.

“Adam Schefter is not going anywhere. That’s the number one thing,” he said on Marchand Sports Media. “The idea that there are succession [plans] out there, let’s break it down a little bit. If ESPN had not gotten the NFL Network to put under its roof, would anybody be mentioning the word ‘succession’ about Adam Schefter, like he’s going someplace?

“I know Woj (Adrian Wojnarowski) retired early, and that was Woj’s to go and return to his alma mater and go to St. Bonaventure. Schefter, though, from my understanding, is 59… I think he considers himself a young 59. So that was a weird one to me. If someone’s putting that out there, I wouldn’t be doing that, personally.”

Rapoport joined NFT Network in 2012 from the Boston Herald, where he covered the New England Patriots.

He brought a sensational report from the NFL Draft, revealing that Makai Lemon was on the phone with the Pittsburgh Steelers when the Philadelphia Eagles trade dup to select him.

The veteran broadcaster also jointly broke the news that the Minnesota Vikings traded linebacker Jonathan Greenard to the Eagles for a third-round pick along with his new colleague Schefter.

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NFL hits speed bump in pursuit of new TV deal

The NFL was expected to wrap up a new slate of TV deals extending well past the current 2029 opt-out.

A huge wedge of extra money would also be lining the league’s pockets, but progress has halted with a resolution unlikely before the 2026 season gets underway.

“We haven’t seen a ton of progress, at least on the financial side,” Guggenheim Securities analyst Mike Morris told John Ourand of Puck. “[CBS] seemed like it might be the first domino, but we haven’t really heard anything since then.”

He added: “At this point, I’d be surprised if it gets done before the start of the 2026 season.

“It’s not impossible, because what the NFL seems to be pursuing is more of an extension of existing rights under new terms than a wholesale renegotiation — selling back its option to reopen after the 2029-30 season in exchange for higher fees.

“To the extent that doesn’t change who has which packages, I think that could get done before the season.”

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The broadcast landscape has changed with the rise of streaming platforms and the days of execs throwing as much money as necessary toward sports leagues is over.

Netflix, YouTube and Amazon Prime are making inroads into the space, with more primetime games available for fans, albeit at an ever-rising cost.

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