On Friday, former Los Angeles Chargers running back Melvin Gordon signed a two-year deal with the Denver Broncos. In the world of NFL free agency, it’s a fairly normal story, especially compared to the impending whereabouts of Tom Brady, Philip Rivers, and Jamies Winston. Gordon’s a solid running back but you wouldn’t have thought there’d be too much to the story beyond the announcement.
However, things got a little test on Twitter immediately afterward between ESPN’s Adam Schefter and former Denver Post and current 9News Broncos beat reporter Mike Klis for reasons that still don’t seem entirely clear.
First, Ian Rapoport broke the news, as he often does.
Source: The #Broncos and RB Melvin Gordon have agreed to terms on a 2-year deal worth $16M with $13.5M guaranteed. The former #Chargers star stays in the division, creating a strong 1-2 punch with Phillip Lindsay.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 20, 2020
Then, like so many other reporters covering the story might do, Klis chimed in with some insight related to a rumor that Gordon was headed to Buffalo before the deal was signed.
https://twitter.com/MikeKlis/status/1241184026540441600
Nothing out of the ordinary there based on what was rumored and you might expect. Then, out of nowhere, Adam Schefter swooped in and decided to blow up Klis’s tweet.
Just to be clear, Mike, Bills didn’t make any offers to Gordon. https://t.co/2NmiZpzmyL
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 21, 2020
Klis hadn’t tagged or called Schefter out, as far as we can tell. So Schefter really seemed to want to make sure Klis knew he was wrong and that others knew Klis was wrong. However, Mike wasn’t backing down and a back and forth ensued.
https://twitter.com/MikeKlis/status/1241193373727223809
Agent reached out to Bills; Bills never made offer. https://t.co/kJMYXFLBca
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 21, 2020
https://twitter.com/MikeKlis/status/1241198268001837056
After that, they both went radio silent on the issue, either because they hashed it out in private or because they both realized they weren’t going to budge.
So what was that about? For one media member to publicly call out another media member as being wrong on their reporting, you have to be pretty sure of your footing. But both sides seem very clear about where they stand. Was there something personal coming out here or just the heat of the moment getting to Schefter? Regardless, Schefter’s position with ESPN gave him the high ground in this fight, so a lot of people were curious to know why he decided to go knives out on a longtime local reporter.
FWIW, Rapoport had reported that another team had made a better offer but Gordon wanted to stay in the same division as the Chargers.
Melvin Gordon had a better offer from another team, but the lure of playing in the same division as the #Chargers, that appealed to him. https://t.co/ZX9KZ4nvkc
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 20, 2020
It’s certainly possible both of them got information from solid sources that differ. Either way, send a DM next time, guys.
[The Big Lead, Buffalo Rumblings]
