It seemed as though the Shannon Sharpe saga was at an end on August 17. Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reported that Sharpe would be joining ESPN a little over two months after leaving FS1 and Undisputed. According to Marchand, Sharpe would make twice-weekly appearances on First Take alongside Stephen A. Smith while also bringing Club Shay Shay to the network as well.
As also mentioned by Marchand, a return to ESPN would be something of a homecoming for Sharpe. It was his guest appearances on the show when Bayless anchored the broadcast between 2004 and early 2016 that would lead to the creation of Undisputed in late 2016. However, unfortunately for Marchand and The Post, they appear to have missed the mark on this report.
Read More: Shannon Sharpe says he'll be back on TV in time for football season
Stephen A. Smith Calls Post Report "A Bit Premature"
“I have a smile on my face. Beautiful smile on my face. You all know that it’s something that I want, it’s something that I have declared because I respect Shannon, I like him. I think he’d be a tremendous asset to the show, my show, First Take...But my point is that it would be great to have him," Smith began while addressing The Post's "exclusive". "Here’s the issue, we don’t. Sorry Andrew Marchand of the New York Post, it’s a bit premature. Shannon Sharpe is yet to sign on the dotted line to be a member of First Take. It has not happened yet. I’m still confident that it will happen, I still believe it will happen, I think it needs to happen. And I have doubt that I am going to exhaust every means I have available to me to make it happen.”
So yes, fans of "Unc" who were looking forward to him chewing the fat with Smith might need to wait just a little bit longer. It's likely accurate to say that ESPN is the frontrunner for Sharpe's services. However, Smith's comments are the exact comment that Marchand originally said that ESPN declined to give. Given that Sharpe said he'll be back for football season, it's likely that his decision will be announced in the coming weeks. Despite that, for now at least, the Hall of Famer remains a free agent. This is a developing story and we'll have any updates as and when they emerge.
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