The "insider" game has changed, dramatically

The NFL, unlike any other American sport, has spawned a class of national "insiders." And the "insider" game has changed, dramatically.

Full disclosure: I guess I'm one of them, even if my approach is different. I mainly hope to find out, and to report, things they don't want us to know. To uncover and highlight the inconvenient truths (like the year-to-year structure of Sam Darnold's deal). To push the storylines that tend to hold the stewards of the game accountable (even if it pisses them off and prompts complaints to NBC) in the hopes of improving the product.

I've got no interest in reporting on transactions that will be announced in as little as five minutes after the tweet is posted. I'll take the periodic nugget that lands in my lap, but I won't play the game the "insiders" now have to play in order to get a head's up on a new contract or a trade or a release or any other move that is about to be made.

The "insider" industry started as an extension of actual journalism. The pioneer was Will McDonough. Chris Mortensen widened the trail that McDonough blazed. Nowadays, however, "insiders" are everywhere. And most of them operate not as journalists but as hand-picked conduits for information that could be given to any, some, or all of them. (They'll be upset with that characterization. Regardless, the shoe fits.)

We've addressed in the past the fact that teams often engineer the manner in which news of, for example, a new contract will be revealed. Five minutes before the deal is announced, it will be reported to the world by a hand-picked "insider." In most of these cases, there's no longer a firewall between reporter and subject. Instead, it's become a symbiotic relationship — in the dynamic between both insiders and teams and insiders and agents.

One of the most significant developments in this regard happened upon the launch of NFL Network in 2003. When the league started hiring, and paying, reporters to cover the various teams that own and operate the NFL's in-house media conglomerate, a boundary was crossed. Not as conspicuous as the Rubicon, it was subtle. It seemed normal and natural. And anyone (like me) who pointed out the obvious conflict of interest for those who were paid by the league to cover the league was dubbed an agitator at best, an asshole at worst. (The shoe fits for me, too.)

Right or wrong, the arrival of NFL Network shoved the "insider" industry toward where it now is. Today, when it comes to any transaction that teams and/or agents can announce on their own or hand to an "insider," any "insider" who hopes to receive and report that information is necessarily compromised by the importance of maintaining the relationship that positioned the "insider" to get the scoop in the first place.

Last week, for example, the many Twitter reports (when Twitter was actually, you know, functioning) regarding new free-agent deals were littered with public recognition of the agents who negotiated the contracts and, at times, gratuitous praise for what a great deal it was. The General Manager that negotiated the contract was never mentioned, because team executives aren't the sources for free-agent contracts. The information almost always comes from the agents, and securing a spot on the group text the agent disseminates now includes: (1) reporting only the new-money average, which is always higher than the value of the contract at signing; (2) reporting the injury guarantee, which is always greater than the true, full guarantee; and (3) mentioning by name the agents who negotiated the contract.

It's not an accident. It's the current cover charge for being an "insider." Anyone who can't or won't play along won't get the texts.

More recently, another strange dynamic has become obvious. When it's time for the "insiders" to do their insider thing, with all of them getting the same information at or about the same time, they always behave as if they're the only ones who reported it.

It became glaring over the past 12 hours, in connection with the report regarding the contracts signed by Bengals receivers Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. Jordan Schultz of Fox somehow managed to elbow his way to the front of the line. He tried to call it an "exclusive," but it wasn't. He simply got the information before it was handed to other "insiders."

And even though much was made a few weeks ago regarding Schultz's alleged methods for positioning himself (with or without offers of Uber stock) to get the information first at best or simultaneously at worst, the rest of the insiders simply ignored the fact that Schultz had it first. Hell, some are trying to make it look like they had the news before Schultz, because it was reported on Friday by others that the deals were close.

The audience doesn't care who reports the news. They just want the information. The teams and the agents, for the most part, see the value in spoon feeding the information to one or more "insiders." There's a mutual benefit. The "insiders," by snatching scoops, are able to justify their existences — and their salaries. The teams and/or the agents get their news publicized for free, before making the formal announcements.

The "insider" industry isn't going anywhere. But it has definitely morphed into its own category of media. "Insiders" aren't journalists. They're external P.R. reps, whose packaging as a press release of what otherwise would be hard news boosts the outlets that employ them, while also making each transaction seem like a bigger deal. And, for the agents who drive the "insider" bus (especially during free agency), it's a way to push embellished (and, at times, fraudulent) numbers into the NFL bloodstream while also getting a free Twitter advertisement that can then be used to recruit more clients.

It's the NFL's version of the circle of life. Throughout the year, the "insiders" harness and spread the information that teams and/or agents choose to disseminate through them. During free-agency week, the competition among the "insiders" has prompted each of them to set aside nagging concerns such as whether the information being shared with the audience is the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. That's because, on the mean streets of #scooptown, he (or she) who hesitates to ask questions or get clarification or confirm accuracy has already lost the thumb race to Twitter.

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