This season you can experience behind-the-scenes access like never before by following all your favorite players, teams, front office personnel and team beat writers on Twitter. The list of NFL stars on Twitter grows by the day. If you’re looking for confirmed NFL players on Twitter, click on the “Complete List” tab at the top of the page and then click the NFL tab, the second tab on the bottom.

For a directory of NFL media on Twitter, click the “Media” tab at the bottom of the same screen and scroll down to the NFL list. Happy Opening Weekend 2009!

Here are some Twitter accounts to follow during the weekend’s NFL Draft.

Please click here to follow us on Twitter!

NFL
NFL – @NFL
Commissioner Roger Goodell – @NFLCommish
Spokesman Greg Aiello – @GregAiello

NFL Teams
Atlanta Falcons – @Atlanta_Falcons
Baltimore Ravens – @1WinningDrive
Carolina Panthers – @PantherTalk
Cincinnati Bengals – @CinBengalsNFL
Houston Texans – @theTexans
Miami Dolphins – @MiamiDolphins
New England Patriots – @realpatriots
New York Jets – @NYJets
San Diego Chargers – @Chargers
Seattle Seahawks – @Seahawksdotcom
Tennessee Titans – @TennesseeTitans

Draft Eligible Players
Everette Brown, FSU – @EveretteBrown
Don Carey III, Norfolk State – @DonCarey
Kevin Grant, Akron State – @KGtheMachine
Jake Ingram, Hawaii – @Jake_Ingram_LS
Rashad Jennings, Liberty – @RashadJennings
Knowshon Moreno, Georgia – @KnowshonMoreno
Mark Sanchez, USC – @Mark_Sanchez
DeAngelo Smith, Cincinnati – @Deangelo6
Jason Williams, Western Illinois – @jwill6

ESPN
ESPN – @ESPN
SportsCenter – @SportsCenter
Chris Mortensen – @Mort2U
Merril Hoge – @MerrilHoge
Mike and Mike in the Morning: @GreenyandGolic

Sports Illustrated
Peter King – @SI_PeterKing

NFL Network
Rich Eisen – @RichEisen
Jamie Dukes – @JamieDukes

Los Angeles Times
Sam Farmer – @LATimesFarmer

Fox Sports
Ed Thompson – @Ed_Thompson

Beat Writers
Greg Bedard, Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, @Greg_A_Bedard
Mark Bradley, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, @MarkBradleyAJC
Rich Hofmann, Philadelphia Daily News, @TheIdleRich
Stephen Holder, St. Petersburg Times, @HolderStephen
Matt Maiocco, Press Democrat, @mattmaiocco
Brendan Prunty, Star-Ledger, @BrendanPrunty
Joe Reedy, Cincinnati Enquirer, @JoeReedy

In our first post, we’ll take a look at some of the biggest superstars on Twitter.

Shaq is one of the NBA’s biggest stars and he is the biggest pro athlete on Twitter with over 401,000 followers as of this post. In many ways, Shaq was really the beginning of pro athletes on Twitter. There may have been others that joined the site before him but Shaq almost single-handedly brought NBA starts on Twitter.

While the Sports on Twitter list currently has more than 25 current NBA players, coaches and owners, some players have embraced Twitter more than others. Superstars LeBron James and Allen Iverson may be among the game’s elite but they’re just rookies on Twitter. James has yet to tweet on his brand new, confirmed account while Iverson has only updated twice since joining Twitter in early March.

While the list of NBA players on Twitter grows by the week, the list of NBA coaches and executives on the Sports on Twitter list is slowly growing, too. Phoenix Suns coach Alvin Gentry and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban are two of the first NBA Twitterers from outside the player ranks. Gentry uses his account to post thoughts about recent and upcoming games while Cuban entertains fans’ questions in his typical gregarious manner.

The NBA isn’t the only league to have star players on Twitter. CC Sabathia of the New York Yankees, arguably the most sought-after free agent this past off-season, has taken to Twitter to talk to fans as he settles in as the Yankees mound ace. Sabathia is just one of a growing list of MLB players that are now on Twitter, including recently retired Red Sox ace Curt Schilling and controversial former superstar Jose Canseco.

NHL superstars Alexander Ovechkin and Patrik Elias are two of the first NHL players to use Twitter to talk to their fans. In what may be a glimpse of things to come, Elias uses his Twitter account and Facebook fan page to host giveaway contests for his fans.

Giveaways on Twitter aren’t just limited to superstar players, either. The WNBA franchise the Atlanta Dream recently offered free tickets to fans that signed up to follow their Twitter account and Facebook page. Indeed, many professional sports teams are using Twitter to reach out and connect with fans in new ways.

That’s the beauty of Twitter–it’s a communication tool that isn’t limited to just people in a certain area or even certain types of people. Twitter lets you communicate worldwide, with anyone at any time. So if you’re a sports fan, Twitter is a great place to be. And if you’re looking for the latest sports stars and teams on Twitter, the Sports on Twitter list and Sportsin140 are here to keep you updated every day. Thank you for reading and I look forward to hearing from you.