25 NFL Must-Follows (With Under 10K Followers) On Twitter

Updated 5/10/2013

When John Talty wrote a fantastic list of Sports Writer Must-Follows for the International Business Times, it struck me (and others) how most on the list had more than 10/25/50 or even 100 thousand followers.

So, I compiled this list of the greatest NFL sports must follows that have less than 10 thousand followers. The list ranges from bloggers to radio guys; from guys who break news to those who aggregate it. If you’re not following these people on Twitter, you’re simply doing it wrong. (Also, if you stumbled here without following me (@Schottey) feel free to do so as well.)

Note: ALL of these people talk about NFL at the league-wide level most of the time. While there are plenty of other great team-based tweeters, I tried to keep this list more globally-focused.

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@footballfacts (9501)–Cold Hard Football Facts/Sports Illustrated

Kerry J Byrne is an award winning columnist and someone who always seems to find a new angle to the game of football no one else is looking at. Analytics in the NFL is on the rise, and Kerry has been a big reason why.

@brian_mcintyre (9383)–NFL.com, Football Outsiders

Probably the best NFL News aggregator on the planet, you will not miss a nugget of player movement if you follow Brian. He’s usually first on the scene with cap numbers as well.

@Chet_G (9296)–FakeFootball.com

Chet Gresham has written more about fake football than most people write about the stuff that happens on the field. His twitter account is the best place to follow all of the different places he writes and ask him about why your team stinks.

@MattWaldman (8967)–Football Guys, Football Outsiders

Matt’s “Rookie Scouting Portfolio” is a must-read every spring as fans and media prepare for the draft. When it’s not draft season, Matt’s one of the more underrated analytical minds and is more than willing to share his opinion and answer your questions on real football or the fantasy stuff.

@NFLOsophy (8537)–Former NFL Team Employee

This anonymous account is run by a young man who used to be the Operations Coordinator for an NFL team. He’s got the inside track on lots of NFL info and is a talented scout/Xs and Os mind as well.

@SalaryCap101 (7515)–Priority Sports/ESPN Radio

One of the smartest money guys around the NFL, J.I. Halsell has been on both sides of the negotiating table and also serves as the NFL Insider for ESPN Radio D.C.

@MikeTanier(7323)–Sports On Earth

One of the better “think outside the box” guys in the NFL blogosphere, Mike Tanier writes for just about every outlet one could imagine and does so with expertise. Recently moved to USA Today’s new sports venture.

@ChrisBurke_SI (7178)–Sports Illustrated

Chris has been an NFL editor at Fanhouse, made a brief stop at Bleacher Report and took his talents to Sports Illustrated, where he runs “The Audibles” blog.

@Eric_Edholm (7124)–Wall Street Journal/Sideline View

He’s covered a host of divisions for PFW, but his tweets know no bounds. Again, you’re missing a lot of great insider gossip and NFL analysis if you’re not following.

@JeneBramel (6954)–Football Guys

Dr. Jene is an expert in football injuries and how they’re going to shake up your fantasy roster. Oh, he’s also a talented draft aficionado as well, so make sure you’re following him year-round.

@FOX_JayClemons (6890)–Fox Sports

An award winning fantasy columnist, Jay recently joined B/R as a baseball/NFL fantasy guru and shares all of his knowledge on twitter. Your league will hate you, but follow Jay and you might start bringing home first place.

@Ted_Sundquist (6101)—TheFootballEducator, Former NFL GM

Mr. Sundquist has insight that very few in the media can match after spending time in the Denver Broncos front office and at the Air Force Academy as an assistant coach. He has a way of looking at things from an angle no one else takes.

@PFF_Sam (6024)–Pro Football Focus

Sam also tweets from the @ProFootbalFocus account so he’s a little late to the twitter game. Still, for fantastic analysis and an unbiased look at the players you think you know about, Sam is one of the best.

@thefootballgirl  (5669)–TheFootballGirl.com

Want the “fairer side’s” perspective on the game? Screw that…Melissa Jacobs is one of the smartest and most opinionated NFL bloggers out there and will make anyone man or woman smarter with each tweet.

@davegoldberg84 (4936)

Dave Goldberg is retired from the writing game, but is extremely well-respected for a reason. He’s forgotten more about the game than most of us will ever know and you’d be wise to follow him and learn something.

@Andrew_Garda (4723)--Bleacher Report, Football Guys

The soon-to-be NFC North lead blogger for B/R has written for countless outlets and has a well-rounded approach to the game while never shying away from tough topics. If it’s happening, Garda has an opinion about it.

@Dumonjic_Alen (4556)–Sideline View/The Score

Speaking of fantastic insight, Alen Dumonjic is one of the smartest football minds that no one knows about. His X’s and O’s analysis of NFL games is almost instantaneous and will teach you what just happened before the replay.

@NateDunlevy (4319)–Bleacher Report

Recently hired as the AFC South Blogger for B/R, Dunlevy is a diehard Colts guy, but don’t hold that against him. Nate brings an analytical approach to the game and his “Advanced Stat of the Week,” feature is a must read.

@AndrewBucholtz (4157)–Yahoo!; AwfulAnnouncing

Hailing from north of the board, Andrew tweets a lot about the CFL, but knows its American “big brother” pretty well too. Of course, you’ll get plenty of analysis of the analysts as well, which is always fun.

@Ryan_Riddle (4082)–Bleacher Report

Ryan set Cal’s single-season sack record and was drafted in the 5th round by the Oakland Raiders in 2005. Now, Ryan writes for Bleacher Report and provides readers with an inside look at the game they can’t find anywhere else. Whether it’s personal stories about Ray Lewis and Aaron Rodgers or a breakdown of defensive line play, Riddle brings the heat with every tweet.

@FBGChase (3916)–Football Perspective

Chase Stuart has written for just about everyone in the football biz and now he’s writing for his own site–Football Perspective. His twitter feed is a great mix of highbrow football stuff accessible to the average fan and stats/analysis that will blow your mind.

@CorryJoel (3663)—National Football Post

I like to think that I know a little bit about the business side of football. If I need to know something about a player’s contract terms, I can usually dig it up. Joel Corry, on the other hand, lives and breathes this stuff. He’s become a great resource not only for media, but also for the casual fan.

@TySchalter (3043)–Bleacher Report

Ty Schalter is a Lions blogger turned national lead writer (hey, that sounds familiar!) for B/R and unabashed MSU & American soccer fan. Follow him for just about anything, but just follow him already!

@BKissel7 (2987)—Bleacher Report

BJ Kissel knows both baseball (was Academic All-Big 12 at Kansas State) and football. He’s got a great scouting eye and B/R was very happy to be able to poach him over from Arrowhead Pride. So, if you’re a fan of the Chiefs or the NFL Draft, he’s even more of a must-follow!

@JoshKatzowitz (2916)–CBS Sports

Part of the Eye On Sports blogs, Josh can be found tweeting about almost any big NFL topic. He’s also currently finishing a book about Sid Gilman which promises to be fantastic.

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The problem with doing lists like this is that you always leave someone off. So, here’s another short list of fine follows who “missed the cut” (ie, were inexplicably left off by me/I’m too lazy to up this list to 50). @Andy_Benoit, @nytimes5thdown, @realshaunking, @ckparrot, @RobRang, @ChrisSteuber, @NFL_Bridge, @SoftliSTL, @darrenheitner, @CaptainComeback, @BaxFootballGuru, @PayneNFL,  ‏@MikeMcCartney7, @TysonNFL, @sgw94, @corryjoel, @RotoPat, @AlexDunlapNFL

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Congrats to these guys who used to be on the list but have crossed the 10K threshold–@PatKirwanCBS, @SigmundBloom, @MoveTheSticks, @ChrisWesseling, @Aaron_Nagler, @WillBrinson, @MichaelDavSmith, @JoeFortenbaugh, @dpbrugler