1. Earlier this week, ESPN’s Field Yates called out his colleague, Mel Kiper, for ignoring a group chat.
Our NFL draft group thread has been busy on a near daily basis September.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) April 9, 2025
There have been hundreds of messages sent amongst 5 people.
Only one came from Mel. A simple “👍”
It stopped me in my tracks.
Mel is one of a kind! https://t.co/amgdbzCmaV
A year ago at this time, former ESPNer Todd McShay said on Pardon My Take that Kiper did not have a cell phone, and that McShay would have to text Kiper’s wife, Kim, to get a message to him.
Mel Kiper Jr. still has no cellphone but has 4 different landlines in his house @PardonMyTake pic.twitter.com/hEBvmVja7L
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) April 22, 2024
So, if Kiper didn’t have a cell phone a year ago, but now he’s ignoring a group chat, does that mean he finally got a cell phone some time over the past 12 months? Not to mention that it would seem flat-out unreasonable for someone who covers the NFL draft and is on TV and radio practically all day to not have a cell phone.
This is the kind of hard-hitting investigative journalism I enjoy doing, so when Kiper joined me on this week’s SI Media With Jimmy Traina, I had to get to the bottom of this cell phone mystery.
“Todd was inaccurate on that critique,” Kiper told me when I asked him about not owning a cell phone.
“I have a cell phone,” Kiper said. “I have Kim’s cell phone that I use a lot because those texts come to both of us, and I have my own cell phone that I stash away that I bring to the draft or when I go out or wherever I go, I’ll take that with me. But it’s not always sitting next to me. There’s no cell phone sitting here. There’s never a cell phone around me. Never.”
How come?
“I don’t want to be distracted by it,” explained Kiper. “Nobody needs me that desperately. If they do, Kim is right there if there’s anything important there. But when I’m working, I’m working. I don’t want to have a phone to worry about. Or somebody texting me. I do worry about emails. As you know, at ESPN I get a lot of emails. Questions about what may be happening, that they need answers for a segment we’re doing. Emails I do have to be checking every hour or two. But texts and calls, I have a landline still, Jimmy. If there’s an important call, it’s coming through the landline.”
If you’re somebody who does text Kiper, you have a very teeny tiny window of maybe getting noticed.
“The text messages I’ll worry about at the end of the day to see which ones are important,” said Kiper. But, no, on a regular basis, throughout the course of the day, I don’t want a cell phone anywhere near me.”
In addition to sharing his policy on cell phones, Kiper was outstanding in reminiscing about what the NFL draft was like when he started covering it for ESPN in 1984, and talking about the draft’s growth into what is today. He also discussed getting ripped by Tony Kornheiser, what it’s like to work the draft on television, the famous Bill Tobin moment and much more.
You can listen to the SI Media With Jimmy Traina podcast below or on Apple and Spotify.
You can also watch SI Media With Jimmy Traina on Sports Illustrated‘s YouTube channel.
2. There were many surreal moments during Luka Doncic’s return to Dallas last night.
Luka was brought to tears during a tribute video.
Luka wiping tears after watching Mavs tribute video 🥺 pic.twitter.com/9tYtzdW3A0
— ESPN (@espn) April 9, 2025
Former Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban couldn’t believe the loud “Fire Nico” chants for GM Nico Harrison, that rang out from Dallas fans throughout the game.
The entire Lakers team was encouraging the Dallas fans to chant for Luka.
this is the coolest thing i’ve ever seen pic.twitter.com/Kry77RY1z2
— Luka Donthičć (@landahoy14) April 10, 2025
But my favorite moment, by far, was Lakers guard Austin Reaves pretending all the Luka cheering before the game was for him.
3. New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger was sidelined earlier this week with a case of food poisoning. Bellinger said the culprit was some bad chicken wings, which has now caused him to go on a five-year wing sabbatical.
Cody Bellinger is back in the #Yankees' lineup, but he's not going back to wings anytime soon.
— Gary Phillips (@GaryHPhillips) April 9, 2025
“I was down bad yesterday,” Bellinger said after a case of food poisoning. “I will not eat wings for 5 years. I swear. The thought of it makes me sick." https://t.co/swKOnmrZ5H
If Bellinger needs some advice on how to fill the wing void, SiriusXM’s Chris “Mad Dog” Russo is here to help.
Cody Bellinger getting food poisoning from chicken wings has left @MadDogUnleashed bewildered. Just get a grilled cheese sandwich. pic.twitter.com/mIGOUvMpwX
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) April 9, 2025
4. The days of TNT airing the NBA are quickly coming to a close. The network will air its final regular-season game tonight after a 36-year partnership with the NBA. TNT has had cameras rolling all season and long and the result will be a behind-the-scenes documentary airing next month.
TNT will air ‘Inside the NBA’ documentary before transition to ESPN https://t.co/GYBhQHw86N
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) April 10, 2025
5. If you didn’t see how the Chicago White Sox lost on Wednesday, dropping them to 2–9, you need to check it out.
Very unfortunate ending for the Chicago White Sox pic.twitter.com/Zr8HbUSWYk
— Dillard Barnhart (@BarnHasSpoken2) April 10, 2025
6. The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Colorado Rockies Wednesday night, 17–2. This was all that needed to be said.
FINAL: the game has ended
— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) April 10, 2025
7. RANDOM VIDEO OF THE DAY: In honor of Mel Kiper’s first-ever appearance on SI Media With Jimmy Traina, here is the 1981 NFL Draft, hosted by George Grande, that aired on ESPN if you’d like to see what it looked like back then.
Be sure to catch up on past editions of Traina Thoughts and check out the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast hosted by Jimmy Traina on Apple, Spotify or Google. You can also follow Jimmy on X and Instagram.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as 'Throughout the Day, I Don’t Want a Cell Phone Anywhere Near Me': Mel Kiper Explains Fascinating Phone Philosophy.
