Category: Football

Rich CiminiApr 12, 2026, 06:15 AM ET

CloseRich Cimini is a staff writer who covers the New York Jets and the NFL at ESPN. Rich has covered the Jets for over 30 years, joining ESPN in 2010. Rich also hosts the Flight Deck podcast. He previously was a beat writer for the New York Daily News and is a graduate of Syracuse University.Open Extended Reactions

ON THE MORNING of the 1996 NFL draft, the New York Jets dispatched a front office official to a Manhattan hotel for an eleventh-hour meeting with Keyshawn Johnson and his agent. With the draft set

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Apr 11, 2026, 10:28 AM ETOpen Extended Reactions

A three-person appeals panel on Friday upheld an arbitrator’s decision that there wasn’t sufficient evidence of collusion by teams when negotiating the contracts of Kyler Murray, Lamar Jackson and Russell Wilson in 2022, according to a copy of the ruling obtained by multiple outlets.

While the panel found that teams “were being invited to participate in collusion” by the NFL and called the effort “improper,” it ruled that there wasn’t enough evidence to prove teams took part in the collusion.

The panel upheld the January 2025 decision by arbitrator

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Todd ArcherApr 11, 2026, 10:04 AM ET

CloseTodd Archer is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Dallas Cowboys. Archer has covered the NFL since 1997 and Dallas since 2003. He joined ESPN in 2010.

FRISCO, Texas — Dallas Cowboys safety Markquese Bell was arrested and charged with possession of a controlled substance and marijuana on Friday, according to Collin County jail records.

The arrest was made Friday by Prosper (Texas) police. He would be subject to penalty from the NFL under its personal conduct policy.

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The Cowboys are aware of the arrest and declined comment.

The possession

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Kevin SeifertApr 11, 2026, 06:00 AM ET

CloseKevin Seifert is a staff writer who covers the Minnesota Vikings and the NFL at ESPN. Kevin has covered the NFL for over 20 years, joining ESPN in 2008. He was previously a beat reporter for the Minneapolis Star Tribune and Washington Times. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia.Open Extended Reactions

Ohio State safety Caleb Downs presents the kind of NFL draft riddle that scouts and executives have puzzled over for decades.

He was an undeniably outstanding player during his college career, twice earning All-America honors while winning the Jim Thorpe

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Aaron SchatzApr 11, 2026, 06:40 AM ET

CloseAaron Schatz is an NFL analyst for ESPN.com. He has more than 20 years of experience working in NFL analytics and is the creator of the DVOA and DYAR metric. He also serves as the Chief Analytics Officer at FTN Network.Open Extended Reactions

The 2026 NFL draft class will test the patience of all but one quarterback-needy team. I wrote in last year’s article that the 2025 class was less heralded than 2024, and such teams might have to wait until 2026 for their quarterback of the future. But 2026 has arrived, and it resembles

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FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys started their full draft meetings this week at The Star.

For many hours, the entire group — from owner and general manager Jerry Jones, co-owner Stephen Jones, vice president of player personnel Will McClay, head coach Brian Schottenheimer, all the way through the coaching and scouting staffs — met to go over the prospects who will make up their draft board.

For Schottenheimer, 52, the draft process has been different as he approaches his second year on the job.

Last year, a lot of what he was doing was on the fly as a first-time

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Ben Strauss

Apr 10, 2026, 09:40 PM ET

The Athletic is reinvestigating the coverage of NFL reporter Dianna Russini and the nature of her relationship with New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel amid questions raised about the two this week, sources familiar with the matter told ESPN on Friday.

The New York Post on Tuesday published photos that appeared to show Russini embracing and interlocking fingers with Vrabel on the roof of the adults-only Ambiente resort in Sedona, Arizona. Other photos appeared to show Russini and Vrabel together in and around the resort’s pool.

The Athletic’s executive editor, Steven Ginsberg, initially

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Associated Press

Apr 10, 2026, 06:51 PM ETOpen Extended Reactions

The San Francisco 49ers agreed to a one-year deal with free agent cornerback Jack Jones.

Agent Drew Rosenhaus said the two sides agreed to the deal Friday after Jones had a visit at the team’s facility.

Jones, 28, was originally a fourth-round pick by New England in 2022 and spent time last season with Miami, where he started all 17 games and finished with one interception, two forced fumbles and six passes defensed.

Jones has had his most success playing press man coverage, which should fit well in new coordinator Raheem Morris’ scheme with the

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Marc RaimondiApr 10, 2026, 05:04 PM ET

CloseMarc Raimondi’s first year covering the Falcons was 2024, but it wasn’t his first year at ESPN. He joined the company in 2019 and was a top combat sports reporter. He also covered professional wrestling and wrote the book “Say Hello to the Bad Guys: How Pro Wrestling’s New World Order Changed America,” which was published by Simon & Schuster in 2025. Raimondi also worked for the New York Post and Newsday, beginning in 2009, covering high school and college sports, plus the NFL, NFL, MLB and NHL.Open Extended Reactions

The Atlanta Falcons

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