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Chris Mortensen, a decorated sports journalist who worked as the NFL reporter for ESPN for over 30 years, passed away on Sunday (March 3) in the morning hours. The news about Chris Mortensen has since gone viral, sparking many on X, formerly Twitter, to share their condolences and memories.
As reported by several outlets, including the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, where he worked as a sports reporter, and ESPN, Chris Mortensen worked for ESPN for over three decades, becoming a part of the network in 1991. As it related to NFL coverage, Mortensen became a trusted voice in sports journalism, and he appeared across ESPN in various shows.
Mortensen was known for having an inside ear to the typically insular happenings in NFL locker rooms and their management. He became known for delivering breaking news within the NFL.
Among Mortensen’s many honors, he was named the Dick McCann Award winner for the Pro Football Writers of America in 2016.
Some might remember Mortensen went public with his stage 4 throat cancer diagnosis and took leave from the network, also in 2016. He returned to reporting but not at the same pace as before. Mortensen’s last broadcast appearance was the 2023 NFL Draft.
The family of Mortensen shared details of the reporter’s passing. The cause of death was not readily known.
Chris Mortensen was 72.
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Patrick Mahomes added to his growing trophy case this weekend after leading the Kansas City Chiefs to victory against the San Francisco 49ers at Super Bowl LVIII on Sunday (Feb. 11). With the victory, Patrick Mahomes was named Super Bowl LVIII MVP, marking the third time he’s won the honor.
With the MVP win, Patrick Mahomes etched his name alongside greats such as Joe Montana and Tom Brady with the retired quarterbacks also winning the honor three or more times. With the win, the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl LVIII victory is the third of the Coach Andy Reid and Mahomes era, and the fourth overall for the franchise as noted by CBS Sports.
The contest went into overtime with the 49ers showing a ton of grit behind the hard work of Brock Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, and Deebo Samuel and their defensive corps. However, Mahomes carried out Reid’s game plan and the Niners never had an answer in the extra period, leading the Chiefs to victory and becoming a dynasty in the same breath.
Mahomes also joins the aforementioned Brady and Montana, along with Terry Bradshaw and Troy Aikman as the only starting quarterbacks to win at least three Super Bowls.
“It’s the start of one,” Mahomes said to CBS Sports’ Tracy Wolfson after being asked if Kansas City Chiefs are a dynasty. “We’re not done. I know we’re going to celebrate tonight, but we’re not done. We’ve got a young team, we’re going to keep this thing going.”
Congratulations to Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.
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Super Bowl LVIII will take place in just under two weeks after the conclusion of the AFC and NFC championship games this weekend. The San Francisco 49ers and the Kansas City Chiefs will face off against one another for Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, but some fans online are suggesting this was a matchup planned by the NFL all along.
During the AFC championship, the Chiefs, with stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, were visiting the Baltimore Ravens’ home field where it was thought that NFL MVP candidate Lamar Jackson would lead his team to victory. With a series of penalties, miscues, and the like, the Chiefs’ defense proved to be too much and their experience shined through.
For the NFC championship, the Detroit Lions appeared to be running away with the whole thing in the first half as Jared Goff shredded the 49ers’ secondary. However, it all came apart in the second half as Brock Purdy and the rest of the offense began to heat up with the Lions unable to answer the bell.
For many, this wasn’t the desired outcome as the Lions had a feel-good story about a franchise that has long been frozen out of competing for a Super Bowl title, while the Ravens, behind the talents of Jackson, hoped to bring the title home for Charm City once more.
As it stands, some fans online are suggesting that the 49ers-Chiefs lineup is a desired outcome ratings-wise, pointing to the Chiefs’ Kelce and the hype around his relationship with Taylor Swift as a marketing boost while the 49ers are one of the marquee teams in the league with Purdy, Christian McCaffrey, and Christian McCaffrey leading the offense. We’ve got those reactions below.
Super Bowl LVIII takes place on Feb. 11.
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New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft revealed that Meek Mill reached out to encourage him to trade for star Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson.
As the National Football League held its annual meeting in Phoenix, Arizona on Monday (March 27th), Kraft spoke to reporters and revealed that he had a conversation via text with the “Dreams & Nightmares” rapper three days earlier. “Meek Mill texted and said, ‘Lamar Jackson wants to come to the Patriots,’ Kraft said before adding, “I said, ‘That’s Bill Belichick’s decision.’” When asked about the conversation, Belichick responded in his famously terse manner, “I’m not going to talk about players on any other team.”
Jackson, who’s been the quarterback of the Baltimore Ravens since being drafted by them in 2018, announced that he requested a trade from the team on March 2nd. He related the news of his decision via his Twitter account on Monday, asking fans to personally ask him questions.
This comes 20 days after the Ravens applied a non-exclusive franchise tag after failing to come to terms with him on a long-term contract. That tag means that teams can negotiate with Jackson, but if he signs an offer sheet Baltimore has the right to match it or demand two first-round picks in return.
The 26-year-old quarterback is finding no takers for his services, as he is reportedly seeking a fully guaranteed contract similar to the $320 million contract Deshaun Watson signed with the Cleveland Browns. Many have speculated that the Patriots could make a deal with the Ravens despite their often-bitter rivalry with the franchise, but Kraft and Belichick have expressed support for their current QB, Mac Jones.
Meek Mill’s reported involvement sparked a buzz among industry observers, as it is well-known that he and Kraft have a close relationship. Another reason is that Jackson is not represented by an agent, and the NFL has already sent out an internal memo to all 32 teams to remind them not to engage an “unauthorized representative” by the name of Ken Francis in talks concerning a trade for Jackson.
It was soon revealed that Francis is a business partner of Jackson’s in a fitness equipment business. When contacted by ESPN, Francis denied any negotiating efforts, saying: “I don’t speak for Lamar.”
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Damar Hamlin is still on the mend and looking good after suffering a severe injury during an NFL game early this year. Hamlin looked healthy when he attended the Super Bowl last Sunday, but not everyone appreciated everything about his appearance.
In fact, NFL running back Adrian Peterson took issue with a jacket Damar Hamlin was wearing, which he, apparently, considered to be “disrespectful” to his deity.
From TMZ Sports:
Adrian Peterson’s furious with the jacket Damar Hamlin wore at the Super Bowl, emblazoned with a crucifix with an altered Jesus head, unloading on the 24-year-old in a social media post, calling it “Blasphemy!!” 24-year-old Hamlin was at the game, sitting with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and Donna Kelce. Before kickoff, first responders who saved Damar’s life were honored … and the 24-year-old defensive back was on the field to watch.
Damar was wearing a $3,150 Takashi Murakami “Travis Jesus” jacket with the crucifix … and it really ticked Peterson off. “You should be thanking God son! This is Blasphemy!! We all fall short but cmon man! I find this disrespectful!! #grateful #goddid”
Former running back Fred Taylor tried to reign Peterson in a bit by noting that this was a matter that would be better handled privately. “You should DM him bro…I’m sure (he’d) listen to your opinion,” Taylor replied to Peterson’s Instagram post. “Posting it doesn’t help anyone. He’s young, young ppl don’t always think before they wear things just like people who wear skulls and other things that doesn’t align with Christian beliefs. Try to reach him.”
“But this was different!” Peterson responded. “I know young people don’t think at times, older as well! But with everything surrounding his situation!! This isn’t one of those moments where it’s a young guy not thinking!”
Now, one could argue that, in 2023, it’s long past time folks get over to the fact that not everyone feels the same way about the Christian messiah (or any religious figure for that matter) or how he’s depicted. One could also argue that under no circumstances does Peterson get to tell Hamlin how to feel about his own morality after his own life-threatening experience.
Or, whatever, maybe Hamlin’s jacket was disrespectful.
Either way, it appears that Hamlin and Peterson took the issue to the table and are back to being cordial
“So I spoke with [Damar], and we were able to discuss our thoughts as men. I want to be clear, I’m the last person to judge anyone, and that was never my intention,” Peterson wrote in a follow-up post.
“However, I do feel as if the jacket was disrespectful and it was something that I needed to share. I do realize everyone makes mistakes and falls short at times, so again, my intention was never to judge, just to share my opinion.” (I mean, it’s still hella presumptuous for Peterson to call it a “mistake” based solely on how he felt about it, but, again, whatever.)
“Damar, I have respect and love for you and I wish you nothing but the best, but I just can’t rock with that jacket,” he continued. “I feel like there are a lot of people, young and old, looking up to you and with power and influence comes great responsibility. I apologize for offending you.”
This man is really out here paraphrasing Spider-Man while simultaneously lecturing and apologizing to Hamlin.
We’re glad Damar Hamlin Adrian Peterson worked things out though.
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Andy Reid is best known as one of the best football minds in the NFL today, but nobody would confuse him for being an expert on modern-day Hip-Hop. During a media session on Wednesday (Feb. 8), the Kansas City Chiefs head coach was asked to name the top three rappers alive and the results were hilarious.
Andy Reid, 64, was at the podium fielding questions from members of the media ahead of the upcoming Super Bowl contest against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday (Feb. 12). Among the reporters in the room, former NFL player Brandon Marshall used the moment to test Coach Reid’s Hip-Hop knowledge and the results were actually shocking.
“Do the Fat Boys count as one rapper?” Reid fired back, according to a report from local outlet The Kansas City Star. “All right, Jay-Z, shoot, I don’t know. I’m missing Master P. Yeah, I’m giving you all the old ones. Lil Wayne, wasn’t he just at our place? Who was just at our place?”
As the outlet notes, the name Coach Reid was searching for was Lil Jon, who was a halftime performer at the AFC Divisional Playoffs game versus the Jacksonville Jaguars at Arrowhead. Close, but no cigar, kind sir.
We’re actually impressed that Coach Andy Reid had the swiftness to name that many rappers but it figures that many of the stars he’s coached over the years blasted their tunes and put Reid up on game.
Check out the hilarious exchange below.
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Written By D.L. Chandler , Senior Editor Posted 53 mins ago @dlchandler123 D.L. Chandler is a veteran of the Washington D.C. metro writing scene, working as a journalist, reporter, and culture critic. Initially freelancing at iOne Digital in 2010, he officially joined the iOne team in 2017 where he currently works as a Senior Editor […]
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New Yorkers were heartbroken when the Philadelphia Eagles eliminated the New York Giants from the playoffs a few weekends ago. But when the Empire State Building lit up in green and white lights to celebrate the Eagles making it to the Super Bowl this past Sunday night, Big Apple residents were enraged and screamed betrayal at whoever pulls the switches over at the iconic building.
According to the Gothamist, New Yorkers weren’t too thrilled to see their iconic building beaming in the colors of our football team’s division rival. Especially after Philly caught a break and injured San Francisco’s only two quarterbacks on the roster to punch their ticket to the big game. (That game was hella lame as a result).
Many Giants fans expressed dismay that that the city’s iconic building was celebrating their rival.
City councilmember Keith Powers called the move “absolutely ridiculous” on Twitter.
The city’s Department of Sanitation, which also uses green and white colors, encouraged New Yorkers to pretend the lights were supporting New York’s Strongest.
Yeah, we can’t just pretend this is celebrating our hardworking men and women over at New York City’s Sanitation department. Heads should roll over this! Would they have done the same thing had Giant’s rivals (the Dallas Cowboys) made it to the Super Bowl? They might’ve enraged New Yorkers even more.
While we certainly didn’t appreciate the move made over at 20 W 34th Street, some New Yorkers took things a step further and made their way into the building demanding the lights be changed and whoever runs their Twitter page be fired for the stunt.
We’re willing to bet at least a few of these people were in attendance at the Jan. 6th insurrection. Just sayin.’
Apparently the folks over at the Empire State Building planned on lighting up the building in the colors of whoever won the NFC Championship game. Unfortunately, it turned out to be the Giants’ division rival. Taking to Twitter to mock the outcry the move generated, a representative for the Empire State Building posted a video of himself fake crying while saying “Life is so unfair!”
That fool lowkey looks like Bradley Cooper so you know he’s an Eagles fan. Yes, everyone that looks like Bradley “Super Eagles Fan” Cooper is also an Eagles fan. That’s just hood science at this point. That goes for both men and women.
To be fair, later that night the building also lit up in red and gold to celebrate the Kansas City Chiefs’ victory over the Cincinnati Bengals, but we don’t care about that.
What do y’all think about the move made at the Empire State Building? Fair or foul? Did New Yorkers overreact? Let us know in the comments section below.
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Written By D.L. Chandler , Senior Editor Posted 8 mins ago @dlchandler123 D.L. Chandler is a veteran of the Washington D.C. metro writing scene, working as a journalist, reporter, and culture critic. Initially freelancing at iOne Digital in 2010, he officially joined the iOne team in 2017 where he currently works as a Senior Editor […]
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