With NFL Network and ESPN joining forces, Ian Rapoport’s future is up in the air.
In an interview with The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand, Rapoport said he wasn’t sure what’s next for him professionally with his contract expiring in May and another NFL insider, Adam Schefter, already in place at ESPN.
“Just so we are clear, I don’t know what is coming,” Rapoport said. “No one has told me, ‘It’s going to be like this. It’s going to be like that.’ There are a lot of things I don’t know. A lot of people don’t know, but I’m excited because ESPN is very good at what it does. From my understanding, it is going to be more football, more coverage, investing in NFL Network and making it as best as it could possibly be.”
Rapoport, who has competed with Schefter on the national beat since 2012, having previously covered the Patriots, said he would welcome the opportunity to work with his fellow newsbreaker.
“If we were to work together, I think that would be awesome,” Rapoport said. “I have no idea if it is going to happen. But it would be like ‘The Avengers.’”
Rapoport’s uncertain future is one of many ripple effects to the roughly $3 billion NFL-ESPN merger, which received governmental approval earlier this month.
The NFL will take a 10 percent stake in ESPN, with NFL Network moving under ESPN’s umbrella.
ESPN is also acquiring linear rights to the RedZone channel and will merge the NFL.com fantasy football project with ESPN.com.
“The NFL and ESPN are pleased to announce the official closing of the sale of NFL Network and other NFL Media assets to ESPN,” the NFL and ESPN said in a joint statement. “With the closing, we will begin integrating NFL employees into ESPN in the months ahead. As we look to the future, NFL fans can look forward to expanded NFL programming, greater access to NFL Network, innovative fantasy experiences and unparalleled coverage of America’s most popular sport.”
