Shannon Sharpe is a former NFL tight end who played for the Denver Broncos. And after retiring from the NFL in 2003, he gained the limelight again in 2016. And that was because he joined Skip Bayless as a co-host for his show “Undisputed” on FS1. But then earlier this year, he decided to leave the show after being a part of it for 7 years.
After Shannon Sharpe left Undisputed, fans were excited to see what comes next for the tight end. And now reports suggest that he’ll be joining Stephen A. Smith as a co-host of his show “First Take” on ESPN. And the rumors came after Smith posted a tweet of something new coming up, and Sharpe commented on it.
But it seems like the fans are not happy with it. And soon after Sharpe commented on the post, the comment section got flooded with reactions from fans. While some fans wrote that Shannon Sharpe “backstabbed” Skip Bayless. Others were happy and called Skip a “bigger loser”.
You backstabbed skip for this loser!!! smh
— W🅰️VIDTREY35 (@Honestkdfann35) July 19, 2023
skip a bigger loser ngl
— twizzward (@twizzward) July 19, 2023
Some fans wrote that Skip should get a new co-host. While others claimed that Skip was the main reason behind the exit of Shannon Sharpe.
Skip should just bring in Max Kellerman . . . I wanna see some white on white crime anyway 😭 . . . Cowboys/Giants back and forth all NFL season lol.
— Steve Morales (@SiCkWiDiT83) July 20, 2023
skip is the reason both jenny and shannon left. do you not keep up with the information?
— James 💤 (@jamesthelord_) July 19, 2023
Moreover, many fans simply expressed their excitement for Shannon Sharpe joining the First Take. But some users claimed that Undisputed was better than First Take. And one user even tweeted that the collaboration “doesn’t seem right”.
This just don’t seem right. But I wish u good luck and gods speed
— hill.i.am (@bigjhill23) July 19, 2023
For now, everyone needs to remember that the news of Shannon Sharpe joining Smith is not confirmed. But as ESPN reportedly released around 20 personalities, the news of them signing Sharpe can be true.
Why did Shannon Sharpe leave ‘Undisputed’?
Shannon Sharpe had been hosting Undisputed along with Skip Bayless since September 2016. So when the NFL Hall of Famer announced his exit, everyone was shocked. But anyway, it happened as Fox Sports reached a buyout agreement with Sharpe.
According to reports, there were some differences between Bayless and Sharpe. And it happened after the Buffalo Bills’ Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest during a match. And as the match got canceled after that, Skip Bayless made a controversial tweet.
“No doubt the NFL is considering postponing the rest of this game — but how? This late in the season, a game of this magnitude is crucial to the regular-season outcome … which suddenly seems so irrelevant,” Bayless tweeted.
Shannon Sharpe was absent from the show the next morning. But when he returned the next day, he expressed his disappointment with Bayless’ tweet. And he reportedly wanted Bayless to delete that tweet. But Bayless was determined not to do it as it was not wrong according to him.
Then the two argued over whether FS1 heads wanted him to delete the tweet or not. And after the disagreement, Shannon Sharpe announced his decision to leave the show. “Ladies and gentlemen, this is officially my last day at work,” he said before leaving the show forever.
And now after a few months of parting ways with Bayless, Sharpe is reportedly ready for a new beginning with Stephen A. Smith and ESPN. So it’ll be interesting to see whether the rumors of the former NFL star joining Smith turn out to be true or not.