Stephania Bell

If you’re interested in a peek behind the curtain into what just might be the future of QB development - as in, career-long evolution - I present this. How Caleb Williams, Brock Purdy and others are resetting the way quarterbacks prepare - via @ESPN App espn.com/nfl/story/_/id…

It’s been quite a week. Nothing could have prepared me for the overwhelming support and kindness I’ve received from so many of you. Your messages continue to lift my spirits. Trust me when I say I see you, I hear you and I feel every ounce of your support. Forever grateful ❤️

@vtownsendnews @FieldYates @Tyler_Fulghum @DanielDopp @MikeClayNFL @LizLoza_FF @fantasyfocus Congratulations, Veronica! You earned your way. All good things to come. ;)

Behind every fantasy sports player is a village who introduced you to the love of the game.@FieldYates, @Tyler_Fulghum, @DanielDopp, @Stephania_ESPN, @MikeClayNFL & @LizLoza_FF’s advice on @fantasyfocus has helped me to become the player I am today and led me to my first SFB 💗

@nfldraftscout Take good care, Matt. Best wishes in your recovery.

A quick update: The surgery to remove my left arm was successful with hopes of an eventual prosthetic replacement. Similarly, the femur and patella surgeries were also successful and the fantastic surgery team was able to save my left leg.  To best focus on my healing and recovery, I’m stepping away indefinitely and will be placed on leave from ESPN. Thank you to all for the prayers and thoughts; please keep them coming.

@MBFantasyLife @PeterSchoenke Congrats on landing one of the best in the industry! Great leader, even better human. 🫡

We're excited to announce @PeterSchoenke as the new CEO of Fantasy Life. Read more about this exciting next chapter 🔗 fantasylife.com/articles/press…

Last week, I was involved in a serious car accident in Missouri and was airlifted to Mercy Hospital. I’m deeply grateful for the exceptional care I have received, from the first responders to the doctors, nurses and medical staff. I’m incredibly fortunate to be writing this.  As a result of the accident, I sustained significant injuries, including multiple fractures and broken ribs. I also underwent a life-saving amputation of my left arm. While I have a long road ahead, I’m focused on my recovery and taking things one day at a time. Thank you for the overwhelming support, prayers and kind messages — they have meant so much to me and my family during this time.   I look forward to continuing my recovery and getting back to ESPN to talk football, including what should be an exciting 2027 NFL Draft class.

@nfldraftscout So sorry to hear this news, Matt but so grateful you’re here to tell your story. Wishing you all the best in your recovery.

@VivekRamgopal Some just take longer. It’s a reminder that we all heal at our own pace. Glad he’s recovered now and ty for your kind words.

@Stephania_ESPN my son’s hook of the hammate excision surgery. You described his recovery to the T - but unfortunately he was on the longer recovery scale. 6 months for him to feel back to normal.

One of my favorite “wow” moments was the first time I joined Linda on @SportsCenter . She couldn’t have been nicer, turned my nerves into laughter. Legend. 🙌

And…if you want to play in the “Bull Durham” league with me, sign up below!

Aldon Smith passed away this weekend. Most people are talking about his incredible ability, potential, and performance as a football player. Even though that is all true. He was so much more than that. He was a great friend and his kindness changed my life forever. I met Aldon our freshman year at Mizzou. He was redshirted and relatively unknown as an athlete. His giveaway was the biggest hands you'll ever see and his ability to dunk at 250lbs, but his size in many ways didn't match his personality. He was relatively quiet and in most scenarios would try to shrink into the room vs stand out in it. Over the course of the next year, we became close. We were very different people, from different places, but we both connected on the feeling of being a bit lost in the beginnings of adulthood. That year, I never really thought about him as a football player. He was just this gentle giant who loved to play video games and talk about life. His sophmore year he broke the single season sack record at Mizzou, became an All American, and his life changed forever. He became a celebrity on campus. He became a household name in Missouri. He became a top NFL draft prospect. I remember how crazy his life became, and how quickly. ESPN doing interviews. Fancy cars being "loaned" to him. And people everywhere inserting themselves into his life. Despite the craziness, my friend was always a text away. My junior of college, I decided to take my first stab at entrepreneurship. I wanted to launch a chapter of Camp Kesem. Kesem is a summer camp for children whose parents have been affected by cancer. The camp would be totally free and be a chance for a kid to experience the magic of being a kid again. As a son of a breast cancer survivor the idea of being able to create this camp in Missouri meant the world to me. The Livestrong Foundation was hosting a nation wide contest to win $10,000 as seed capital to get started. To win, you had to have the most votes. I tried really freaking hard to win that competition. I was going up against some really influential people at huge schools. As a somewhat awkward kid in Columbia, MO I had no chance. So I asked my friend Aldon for a favor. I asked him if he would help me out and promote the link to vote. He did more than just posting about Kesem on Facebook, skyrocketing us into the top place in the country. He kept supporting me the next 3 years while I was working on building Kesem. He showed up to have fun with the kids. He helped me fundraise. He helped me get Kesem to become an official organization sponsored by the NFLPA so he could publicly endorse us as as a player. Since then Torry Holt, Larry Fitzegerald, and many others have supported Kesem. But Aldon was the first. Kesem led me to move to Austin to work for the Livestrong Foundation. Kesem is how I met my wife. Kesem gave me the confidence to start Workweek and continue the path of building something from scratch. But in reality, Aldon enabled all those things. Throughout the years we had many amazing memories together. Having my wife and I vacation to his house in San Jose. Going to New Orleans for the Super Bowl and seeing his entire family make the trip. Meeting his son and watching him be a dad. The hilarious night we met Derek Jeter. Having the most intellectual conversations about life while playing Call of Duty. I also saw him struggle. There's no doubt he was a complicated person. Truthfully, I don't know if he ever really figured out who he wanted to be. I know just because your'e 6'4, 250lbs, and get 5.5 sacks in a single NFL game doesn't necessarily mean you want to be a football player. No matter the reasons, he made many bad decisions in his life. Some of those mistakes made it hard for me to stay as close as we'd once been. One day, not too long ago, I just decided to text him. It had been years since we really chatted. I just wanted to say thank you for all that he had done for me and that I was sorry I wasn't there for him more through his struggles. We FaceTimed after that, and it was like the old days all over again. Aldon was more than the headlines, the mistakes. He was a generous, gentle soul, a kid at heart, someone who was endlessly curious about life... all in the body of a world class NFL player, bearing the weight of professional pressure and personal circumstances that most of us can't even imagine. People are complex. People who make bad decisions can also do great things. A person can be hated by almost everyone and, yet, there are people in that person's life who still love them deeply. I learned many of these lesson due to Aldon, and I'll carry them with me forever. Rest in peace, Aldon. You won't be forgotten.

Movie-themed division I’m heading up in the Rainbow Bowl so of course I chose Bull Durham (if you heard my episode I co-hosted of Colton and the Wolfman a few years back on SiriusXM Fantasy Sports channel, you get this). Come play with us!

Want to play against an ESPN legend? Sign up for Rainbow Bowl and get the chance to play in a league with @Stephania_ESPN forms.gle/gxnJ5hKofq92EG…

ARE YOU READY?! forms.gle/MSrYKUP9bV9TfS… Rainbow Bowl Season 3 is shaping up to be the biggest ever! Sign up using the link above! Sign up for your chance to play with your favorite fantasy analyst and represent their favorite movie!

@FF_LeapOfFaith Thank you, Faith and Women of FF!

Happy Birthday, @Stephania_ESPN!! 🥂

@bhofheimer_espn @FSWA @ESPNFantasy Thank you, Bill. You always go the extra mile for our birthdays and it is sincerely appreciated.

Happy birthday to @Stephania_ESPN. An @FSWA HOFer, Stephania has been a member of our ESPN team since 2008 as a sr. writer, injury analyst & @ESPNFantasy contributor. She continues to elevate her analysis & our storytelling using Human Anatomy VR via Virtual Medicine.

One week before being ordered to serve 30 days in jail, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice underwent a clean-up surgery on his right knee to remove loose debris that was causing inflammation and now is expected to sideline him two months, league sources told ESPN.

@Mac_Nwulu @espn Mac! Going to miss you.

Thanks so much, Mike! True to form for the understated Mac, I let one of my original hiring bosses share the news today. As I wrap up my final work day @ESPN, I’m looking back with immense gratitude for the amazing people and memories. Onward & forward!

Chargers schedule release crew remains elite. I see the EMF reference in 48ers week. 😂

@KyleSoppePFN We’re going to think positively, Kyle.

Might get a little tricky to feel great about @Stephania_ESPN's 49ers down the #FantasyFootball stretch this season. Purdy in the mix for a low-end QB1, but the position is deep and this is a worry

Giants WR Malik Nabers underwent a second surgery on his knee to remove scar tissue that was causing stiffness, according to sources. I'm told the second surgery took place "multiple weeks ago" and it was described as a "clean up." This second surgery isn't expected to impact Nabers' recovery timeline. The team is still hoping the No. 1 WR will be ready for the opener. Nabers first underwent ACL and meniscus surgery on Oct. 28.