Longtime ESPN NFL reporter Chris Mortensen passed away over the weekend. He was 72 years old. Mortenson joined ESPN in 1991 and was featured on many of the network’s NFL shows and its flagship show “SportsCenter.” “Mort was widely respected as an industry pioneer and universally beloved as a supportive‚ hard-working teammate‚” Jimmy Pitaro‚ chairman of ESPN‚ said in a statement. “He covered the NFL with extraordinary skill and passion‚ and was at the top of his field for decades. He will truly be missed by colleagues and fans‚ and our hearts and thoughts are with his loved ones.” Former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning responded to the news of Mortensen’s passing by calling him a “true legend.” “We lost a true legend. Mort was the best in the business and I cherished our friendship‚” Manning said. “I trusted him with my announcement to sign with the Broncos and with the news of my retirement. I will miss him dearly and my thoughts and prayers are with Micki &; his family. Rest in peace‚ Mort.” ESPN Senior NFL Insider Adam Schefter responded to the news of Mortensen’s passing in a post on X: “An absolutely devastating day. Mort was one of the greatest reporters in sports history‚ and an even better man. Sincerest condolences to his family‚ and all who knew and loved him. So many did. Mort was the very best. He will be forever missed and remembered.”   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Peyton Manning (@peytonmanning) Mortensen was diagnosed with Stage 4 Throat Cancer in 2016 but later returned to the network for several more years before announcing last September that he was retiring. “Excited about another season but it’s time to reveal after my 33rd NFL draft in April‚ I made a decision to step away from ESPN and focus on my health‚ family and faith‚” he posted on X. “The gratitude and humility is overwhelming. It’s not a classic retirement. I’ll still be here talking ball. It’s just time. God Bless you all.” Mortensen was outspoken about his Christian faith. "Is Jesus who he says he was?" I'm so sad about Chris Mortensen's passing but was so fortunate to have him as a friend and have conversations with him on our @Sports_Spectrum podcast to have him share his faith story. This clip is from Mort's conversation with @JadeMcCarthy… pic.twitter.com/16sJbm34RP — Jason Romano (@JasonRomano) March 3‚ 2024 This report has been updated to include additional information. 

Chris Mortensen has died at the age of 72

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An esteemed molecular biologist has come forward to warn of "smoking gun" evidence that COVID-19 not only originated from China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology‚ but it was engineered by researchers at the Chinese lab. Richard H. Ebright‚ Ph.D.‚ is a molecular biologist at Rutgers University and is on the Board of Governors Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology at Rutgers University and Laboratory Director at the Waksman Institute of Microbiology. The Harvard Junior Fellow earned the Searle Scholar Award‚ was named a Johnson &; Johnson Discovery Research Fellow‚ was awarded the Walter J. Johnson Prize‚ was named Infectious Diseases Society of America Fellow‚ and took home the National Institutes of Health MERIT Award. Ebright has also served on the National Institutes of Health Molecular Biology Study Section and National Institutes of Health special emphasis panels.He has more than 175 publications and more than 40 issued and pending patents.Ebright is also an outspoken critic of the unchallenged narrative of the origins of the COVID-19 virus. Ebright notes that a document from 2018 points to "smoking gun" evidence that COVID-19 was engineered by researchers at a Chinese lab. Ebright spotlights a March 2018 grant proposal for experiments called "Project DEFUSE." American and Chinese virologists lobbied to receive a $14 million grant from the Pentagon’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency‚ known as DARPA‚ for funding to engineer bat viruses related to SARS-CoV-1 to examine how they could jump to human transmission. According to the Wall Street Journal‚ "The proposal for Project DEFUSE specified that the viruses’ infectivity would be enhanced by inserting into them a genetic element known as a furin cleavage site. Depending on the starting viruses‚ this protocol could have produced SARS-CoV-2‚ the virus that causes COVID-19‚ which has a distinctive furin cleavage site."The proposal involved Chinese bat researcher Zhengli Shi‚ EcoHealth Alliance president Peter Daszak‚ and Ralph Baric – a University of North Carolina professor‚ who reportedly collaborated with the Wuhan Institute of Virology on "risky bat-virus research" in 2015.Commentary noted‚ "The proposal outlines a joint project between Baric’s UNC lab and a team headed by WIV senior scientist Zhengli Shi‚ the famous 'Bat Lady' of the Wuhan lab. The proposal was drafted under the supervision of Peter Daszak — whose EcoHealth Alliance would funnel the hoped-for grant money to the researchers — and was addressed to the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)."The proposal was ultimately denied by DARPA. However‚ Project DEFUSE may have been funded by the Chinese government and executed by researchers at the Wuhan Lab of Virology. The Washington Times reported‚ "Nonetheless‚ speculation persists about whether the research may have proceeded with support from the Chinese government. Project DEFUSE also suggested modifications to bat coronavirus spike proteins‚ introducing 'human-specific cleavage sites.' Notably‚ these techniques are similar to those some biologists surmise could have played a role in crafting the coronavirus responsible for the global health crisis."Nicholas Wade – a former science editor of the New York Times – wrote in the WSJ‚ "Viruses made according to the DEFUSE protocol could have been available by the time COVID-19 broke out‚ sometime between August and November 2019. This would account for the otherwise unexplained timing of the pandemic along with its place of origin."Dr. Filippa Lentzos – an associate professor of science and international security at King’s College London – has also urged the world to acknowledge that the COVID pandemic may have originated from research by scientists. "We have to acknowledge the fact that the pandemic could have started from some research-related incident‚" Lentzos said in a United Nations speech."Are we going to find that out? In my view‚ I think it’s very unlikely that we will‚" she stated. "We need to do better in future. We are going to see more ambiguous events." “There will be an outbreak‚ and we won’t know if it’s natural‚ deliberate‚ or accidental‚ and as an international community we need to find ways in which we can investigate that‚" Lentzos warned. "For our purposes what is important we need to acknowledge that it could have been‚ and so what should your responses be."As Blaze News reported on Saturday‚ the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced new guidelines regarding COVID-19 that are in stark contrast to previous recommendations by the health agency. The CDC now says people who test positive for COVID-19 no longer need to quarantine from others for at least five days‚ advised treating coronavirus in the same manner as the flu‚ and to gather outside to prevent sickness. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

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