When former 14-year employee of NFL Media Andy Fenelon tweeted that the organization recently laid off 132 people, including him, that seemed significant. After initially not commenting on the record, a league spokesperson has provided a statement.
“Every offseason, NFL Media makes staffing adjustments for the upcoming season, which results in some positions being eliminated — nowhere near the wildly inaccurate figure circulating on social media — and some being hired, which we expect to announce in the very near future,” the statement explains. “What we have seen this summer isn’t markedly different than in previous offseasons.”
A prior report suggested that the league would trim 10 percent of the NFL Media workforce. The statement from the league did not provide a specific number or a percentage.
Presumably, the “wildly inaccurate figure” to which the statement refers is the one Fenelon supplied on Twitter. However, Fenelon’s 132 matches the number that a tipster provided to PFT on July 7, characterizing the layoffs as “NFL Network and NFL Digital employees in Los Angeles,” and that the layoffs affected “all levels” from Vice Presidents to managers. (We hadn’t posted anything about it, because we had yet to confirm or debunk the information.)
Regardless, the league’s position is that: (1) not nearly as many as 132 were let go; (2) it’s part of the normal offseason cycle; and (3) new hires will be announced soon.