ESPN's Adam Schefter has been all over SportsCenter this morning to discuss the newly released video of Ray Rice knocking out Janay Palmer, and he has gone weapons free.
In the video above, Schefter is brought on to discuss the NFL's latest statement, which denies that anyone associated with the league had seen the video of Rice knocking Palmer out before suspending the running back for two games, a claim that runs counter to what was reported by many NFL reporters when the suspension first came down.
Schefter was also SportsCenter in an earlier segment, and was angry then as well:
Schefter has good reason to be angry. As we pointed out earlier, the NFL has made a lot of loyal reporters, Schefter included, look like liars or idiots today. It's no accident that in both of those clips, Schefter makes sure to clearly state that multiple reporters, including ESPN's Jane McManus and SI's Peter King, had it on good authority that the league had seen the tape. He might as well be holding up a sign that reads, "THE NFL IS LYING TO US."
This is what happens when a league lies to reporters' faces. Even the tamest of them, like Schefter, who is basically the gold standard for one-note NFL insiders who exist only to pass on information and occasionally do some tacit shilling, end up turning into Keith Olbermann live on SportsCenter. That's really all you need to know in order to understand just how badly the NFL has fucked this whole situation up.
[ESPN]