The future of CBS Sports parent company Paramount is now arguably more muddled than ever, as an $8 billion merger with Skydance Media appears no nearer to closing, and the company is now shedding more employees. 

Earlier this year, Paramount said it intended to close the large-scale deal with Skydance by the end of June. With less than three weeks to go before that target, the pact remains decidedly in limbo. Getting to closing requires Federal Communications Commission approval, and that assent is likely conflated with settling an ongoing legal battle between CBS News and U.S. President Donald Trump. 

Multiple reports have suggested a potential settlement under discussion that would see an eight-figure payout to Trump to resolve claims the network engaged in election interference by manipulating a 60 Minutes interview with Democratic challenger Kamala Harris. Former CBS Evening News anchor and 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley, however, cautioned against such an agreement, even if it paved the way for the larger Skydance deal.

“It will be very damaging to CBS, to Paramount, to the reputation of those companies,” Pelley said on CNN. “I think many of the law firms that made deals with the White House are at this very moment regretting it. That doesn’t look like their finest hour.”

Paramount, meanwhile, said Tuesday that it will cut 3.5% of its domestic workforce, amounting to several hundred employees, in another round of layoffs, mirroring similar reductions recently at other major media companies such as Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery. The latest round of staff cuts at Paramount also follows a 15% reduction last year.

“These changes are necessary to address the environment we are operating in and best position Paramount for success,” company co-CEOs George Cheeks, Chris McCarthy, and Brian Robbins wrote in a staff memo.

Could the NFL Back Out?

Though CBS Sports has a broad portfolio of programming, including its shared March Madness coverage with TNT Sports, its NFL rights are a bedrock of the company and will be in any future iteration of the network. In the near term, that’s particularly true as CBS shows the largest number of games involving the Chiefs, the league’s top viewership draw. 

The NFL, however, has a clause that would allow it to open up its rights deal with CBS if there is an ownership change. In the case of Skydance, there is little immediate concern about that partner coming in, as the league has a broad-based partnership that includes shared ownership of the studio’s sports vertical. 

Still, any ownership change would be reviewed, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said last summer.

“We’re obviously paying close attention to the process,” Goodell said then. “We know Skydance. They’ve done a terrific job with our relationship. So we’ll look at the structure of the deal. We’ll see how it impacts us. We’ll see how it impacts our business, and we’ll make the best decision for the NFL at that point.”

Skydance’s backers also include the billionaire Ellison family and RedBird Capital Partners.

Editors’ note: RedBird IMI, of which RedBird Capital Partners is a joint venture partner, is the majority owner of Front Office Sports.

NFL mandatory minicamps began Tuesday, and a pair of absentees put a spotlight on the battle to become the league’s highest-paid defensive end.

The Steelers’ T.J. Watt and Bengals’ Trey Hendrickson are both missing their teams’ mandatory minicamp as they look to secure long-term extensions. Assuming they miss all three days, each will incur a fine close to $105,000.

Hendrickson, 30, led the league in sacks last season (17.5) and is on a one-year deal worth $21 million. Watt was the sacks leader in 2023 with 19 and has one year remaining on a four-year, $112 million deal. He finished with 11.5 sacks last season. 

It’s unclear whether either is holding out in the hopes of passing Myles Garrett as the NFL’s highest-paid edge rusher. The Browns star signed a four-year, $160 million deal ($40 million average annual value) in March, a month after he had requested a trade out of Cleveland.

Here are the current highest-paid edge-rushers by average annual value (data from Over The Cap):

• Myles Garrett, Browns: $40 million
• Danielle Hunter, Texans: $35.6 million
• Maxx Crosby, Raiders: $35.5 million
• Nick Bosa, 49ers: $34 million
• Josh Hines-Allen: $28.25 million

Hunter and Crosby both signed new deals this offseason, though the former’s was just a one-year extension that will keep him in Houston through 2026. The rest of the players in the top five have deals of at least four years.

Hendrickson has expressed his disappointment in the Bengals’ front office over the negotiations, saying in April that the team has made it “personal.” Cincinnati has notoriously avoided paying big bucks to its players, but handed out two nine-figure deals to Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins to make them the highest-paid wide receiver duo in the league.

Cowboy Standoff

Hendrickson and Watt aren’t the only edge rushers seeking a new deal. Micah Parsons has yet to agree to an extension with the Cowboys, though he isn’t expected to miss mandatory minicamp. 

On Sunday, Parsons posted a TikTok video following a trend of saying “good night” to his friends. One of the people he called was new Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer, who encouraged Parsons amid the contract negotiations.

“I know this is weird for everybody, man. But look, you’re handling everything the right way, bro. And this thing’s going to get worked out,” Schottenheimer said as Parsons nodded and smiled toward the camera.

Unlike the other two holdouts, Parsons, 26, is still on his rookie contract, and his fifth-year option would be worth $24 million this year. Since joining the league in 2021, the former first-round pick out of Penn State has tallied 52.5 sacks. Parsons missed four games last season due to injury but totaled 12 sacks.

OAKMONT, Pa. — Oakmont Country Club is hosting the U.S. Open for a record 10th time this week, as the USGA continues to lean in to a new strategy that has its championships on a lifetime plan.

As one of three U.S. Open “anchor sites,” Oakmont—which last hosted the major championship in 2016—is set to host three more times through 2049. It will also host two U.S. Women’s Opens during the time period, as the USGA makes an effort to put its men’s and women’s championships on equal footing.

Last year’s U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina was the first one since the USGA created the anchor site strategy in 2021, in an effort to facilitate easier returns to its preferred courses. Pinehurst will host four more U.S. Opens and one women’s championship through 2047. In 2024, the USGA built a new headquarters there and opened the new World Golf Hall of Fame.

Pebble Beach Golf Links—one of the most expensive public golf courses in the U.S. at nearly $700—is the third anchor site, and on tap to host the U.S. Open in 2027, and then six more men’s and women’s events through 2048.

Fortifying Oakmont

In 2023, Oakmont underwent a $4.8 million expansion and a separate course renovation led by renowned architect Gil Hanse that helped modernize the course for the future, including its slate of U.S. Open hosting duties. “It’s one of the [game’s] cathedrals,” Hanse said. “But you understand that the game has evolved.” 

It’s known as one of the toughest courses in the world and has previously produced thrilling championships, with winners including Dustin Johnson (2016), Ernie Els (1994), Johnny Miller (1973), and Jack Nicklaus (1962).

Seats might be hard to obtain during the U.S. Open. With 200,000 fans expected to attend throughout the week, there are 9,500 grandstand seats available throughout Oakmont, and nearly 1,500 premium seats.