Note: If you don’t use Twitter, you can still follow along! Twitter has announced the ability to “fast follow” any account by simply texting “follow @____” to 40404. Their tweets will automatically be sent to your phone. So, if you’re a football fan, no reason not to read this article and keep up with the best NFL sources this season!
The 2010 NFL season is quickly approaching. The preseason is already under way, and the regular season begins on Thursday, September 9th, with the Minnesota Vikings visiting the New Orleans Saints in a rematch of last year’s NFC Championship game. I love baseball and I’m a huge basketball fan as well. In fact, I really enjoy watching most sports. But there’s nothing like sitting on your couch on a Sunday afternoon with a couple of buddies, and a table full of junk food and beer, and watching nine straight hours of hard-hitting football.
So, why am I writing this article? Why a Twitter Guide? Twitter has become the best platform for up-to-the minute news and analysis in most arenas. If you want to stay on top of… anything you care about, Twitter is the place to do it (especially with “fast follow”). I’ll list a number of my favorite NFL-related accounts with a brief reason as to why they’re worth following. Enjoy!
Note: I did not include any team-specific accounts or fantasy football-related accounts.
First, definitely head to nfl.com/twitter. This is a great official Twitter resource for NFL fans that will lead you to a lot of fantastic content.
The NFL [@NFL]
The league’s official account, so you can expect a wide variety of content. The league does not interact with fans too much, so the account essentially serves as a news feed.
Roger Goodell, NFL Commissioner [@NFLCOMMISH]
The account serves as a play-by-play of the commissioner’s activities. Kind of like, “I did this” and then “I did that.” While a little dry and robotic (not sure if he does his own tweeting), still interesting to see the day-to-day activities of the NFL’s main man.
Chris Mortensen, ESPN Senior NFL Analyst [@mortreport]
Mort, as they call him, is pretty much ESPN’s go-to-guy when it comes to the NFL, so definitely worth it to follow him. Expect a lot breaking news to go through him first.
Peter King, Sports Illustrated Senior NFL Writer [@SI_PeterKing]
Similar to Chris Mortensen, he’s a trusted source on the NFL and a senior writer at one of the most powerful sports publications in the world. Expect a lot of good content and breaking news to come from this account.
Rich Eisen, NFL Network Host [@RichEisen]
Eisen has been around for a long time. He’s a former SportsCenter anchor and was the first on-air talent hired by the NFL Network. Eisen is funny, and tweets a lot!
Bob Glauber, NFL Columnist for Newsday [@BobGlauber]
Love following Bob Glauber. He tweets all the time and he often retweets other league and player accounts. He covers the NFL as a whole, and does a very nice job.
Brian McCarthy, NFL PR [@NFLprguy]
Maybe the best account if you want an overview of significant events, positive & negative, from around the league on a daily basis.
Greg Aiello, NFL PR [@gregaiello]
Greg and Brian McCarthy work essentially in conjunction to provide NFL public relation updates. Definitely worth the follow.
Adam Schefter, ESPN NFL Insider [@Adam_Schefter]
Schefter tweets consistently about the NFL. Being that he is an insider, Schefter is often one of the first to break news from around the league. He’s currently tweeting about his trip around the nation to visit NFL training camps. Great stuff!
Trey Wingo, ESPN NFL Live Host [@wingoz]
The host of ESPN’s primary NFL television program, Trey is well-informed and a great tweeter. He @replies people who talk to him and updates regularly.
Pro Football Talk, NFL Resource [@profootballtalk]
Just a stream (no interaction), but super consistent tweets that link to great articles. No brainer follow for any football fan!
Some of my favorite players.
These guys tweet often and serve up high-quality content. Most of them do a nice job of interacting with fans (although, I don’t think anyone can beat my man Kerry), and deserve special recognition.
Chad Ochocinco [@OGOchoCinco]
Nick Mangold [@NickMangold]
Nick Barnett [@NickBarnett]
Terrell Owens [@terrellowens]
Kerry Rhodes [@KerryRhodes]
Ricky Williams [@RickyWilliams]
While I think this is a great start, I know I missed some great NFL accounts. What are some of your favorites? Try to be objective. I’m thinking about accounts that any football fan would want to follow and interact with, not just an Indianapolis Colts fan or a Seattle Seahawks fan. Please share some of the ones I missed in the comments below. Oh, and one last question: Are you ready for some football?
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@EricStangel is a writer for David Letterman and is pretty funny when he jokes about the league. @RapSheet is a great follow for Pats fans.
Thanks for the recommendations! Thought about including Eric, but stayed away since he isn't exclusively NFL. Also tried to stay away from team-specific accounts, but I'm sure Pats fans will love @RapSheet.
Thanks for the recommendations.
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