Adam Schefter Oct 4, 2021; Inglewood, California, USA; Adam Schefter broadcasts from the ESPN Monday Night Football Countdown set before a game between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Las Vegas Raiders at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
NFLBy Jessica Kleinschmidt on

We’ve all fallen victim to retweeting a fake account on Twitter. When it comes to NFL insider Adam Schefter, you always have to be weary of someone who might pose as him.

But what if it’s Schefter himself playing a prank and breaking fake news?

In the midst of his sitdown interview on Barstool’s “Pardon My Take” podcast, Schefter, who has two phones, stopped mid-sentence and glanced at one of his screens. When that happens, you know news is about to break. In this case, it was a *source* of his letting him know Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson would be traded to the Washington Commanders.

One of the hosts, PFT Commenter, AKA Eric Sollenberger, has been wanting Jackson in a Commanders uniform for a while now. He initially thought it was a prank, but Schefter made sure to show the text in question to PFT and Big Cat from a *trusted source.*

Schefter read the text out loud.

“Just a little heads up, this deal with Washington and Lamar is starting to pick up,” Schefter read. “What they’re offering, now looking like it’ll get agreed to tonight, someone here will keep you posted and it’s about to be finalized. Wanted you to be ready. Talk soon.”

The longtime ESPN insider then showed the text to the guys.

They reacted accordingly.

There was a follow-up text as well.

“Not sure I’ve seen anything like this,” Schefter continued to read. “As it heated up, Dan Snyder [owner of the Commanders] jumped in to take it to the finish line, by adding another first-round pick and fully guaranteeing six years. He has to be viewing this as his last move in Washington before he sells, that’s how it looks to me. Will be back in touch soon. Please keep it quiet for now until this is all done.”

PFT continued to say he was set up since the Barstool guys have set Schefter up before. Perhaps it was payback?

“This isn’t real, this isn’t real,” PFT continued to say. He added if this was indeed a prank, it was mean and he created a huge enemy in him.

Schefter continued to make sure nobody in the room was tweeting. He really played the part well.

Toward the end of the interview, they admitted it was a prank. Of course, in spite of it being a prank, “Lamar to Washington” began trending on social media with many people not understanding the full context and running with the video excerpt believing it to be real.

At least for a moment, it was cool to see how a possible source and an insider work behind the scenes.

Always, double and triple-check your sources. 

About Jessica Kleinschmidt

Jess is a baseball fan with Reno, Nev. roots residing in the Bay Area. She is the host of "Short and to the Point" and is also a broadcaster with the Oakland A's Radio Network. She previously worked for MLB.com and NBC Sports Bay Area.

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