NFL Insider Ian Rapoport Reaches New Deal to Remain at NFL Network, per Report
Rapoport will remain with NFL Media, where he's worked for over a decade.
One of the top football insiders in the game is staying put. On Monday, Andrew Marchand of The Athletic reported Ian Rapoport had agreed to terms on a new deal to remain at NFL Network. NFL Vice President of Communications Alex Riethmiller told Marchand they're pleased they got a deal done.
“We’re excited for Ian to continue to be a part of the NFL Network news-breaking team, providing fans the most trusted source of NFL news across the industry," he said.
Rapoport is one of the NFL's best insiders alongside Adam Schefter. While many can claim to report football news, Rapoport and Schefter are in their own class. They have been rivals for over a decade, competing regularly to be first on scoops of all shapes and sizes over the years. Schefter is firmly cemented at ESPN, having signed a new contract in 2022. Now NFL Network can say the same of Rapoport.
It was never realistic to believe he would ever leave NFL Network, but how the league has treated that property in recent months provided reason to question Rapoport's future. The NFL recently laid off several high-profile personalities, such as Andrew Sicliano and Melissa Stark, as part of cost-cutting measures. They also took Good Morning Football off air earlier this month to move it to Los Angeles under the same guise.
Between those moves and the persistent rumblings (as profiled by Marchand in the above piece) that the NFL wants to sell part of NFL Network to an outside party, it's valid to wonder about the long-term status of any significant name. Rapoport certainly qualifies. But it seems that, whatever their plans for the network at large, the NFL still wants Rapoport on the talent roster.
It is a smart decision. Few are better when it comes to inside reporting than Rapoport, and that doesn't seem likely to change anytime soon. A happy marriage from all accounts is set to continue.
