It’s been a hectic 24 hours for NFL insider Adam Schefter, who released a statement explaining a past incident that called into question his journalism ethics. The popular ESPN reporter admitted he went “a step too far” sending an unpublished story to then-Washington GM Bruce Allen but insisted he never ceded editorial control to Allen.
Now Schefter, considered to be among the biggest names in sports media with over eight million Twitter followers, is reportedly being courted by Caesars Sportsbook, according to Michael McCarthy and A.J. Perez of Front Office Sports. The gaming giant has already poached a pair of ESPN alums recently in Trey Wingo and Kenny Mayne, who came aboard as chief trends officer and brand ambassador, respectively. Schefter, whose contract with ESPN expires next summer, would represent Caesars’ splashiest hire yet.
With the acceptance of sports betting changing the landscape—the result of a landmark Supreme Court ruling in 2018—many journalists and media personalities have been eager to conquer that space, wooing the likes of former ESPN Radio fixture Dan Le Batard (DraftKings), Pat McAfee (FanDuel) and business reporter Darren Rovell, now of The Action Network. Following the recent trend toward normalizing sports gambling, FanDuel, DraftKings, BetMGM, Caesars and Bally Sports have all emerged as significant competitors to more mainstream outlets including ESPN, NBC, CBS and Fox.
Leaving the relative safety of ESPN, Schefter’s home since 2009, would be a gamble (no pun intended) considering his massive following there and the network’s continued status as an industry leader. However, with ESPN experiencing a mass exodus of talent—Le Batard, Wingo, Mayne, Will Cain, Maria Taylor, Mike Golic, Rachel Nichols, Tom Rinaldi, Katie Nolan and Bomani Jones have all jumped ship within the last year—Schefter could be tempted to pursue other opportunities outside the Bristol umbrella. Becoming the face of Caesars, an entity that’s shown an eagerness to expand its presence in the sports content game, would no doubt accomplish that.
If successful, Caesars’ pursuit of Schefter could set off a domino effect with Chris Mortensen, Dianna Russini, Field Yates, Mina Kimes, Jeff Darlington, Dan Graziano and even Schefter’s NFL Network counterpart and chief rival for scoops, Ian Rapoport, all reportedly candidates to replace him as ESPN’s lead news breaker.
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