Shannon Sharpe Wanted ESPN Exit News to Wait Until After Brother’s Football Hall of Fame Induction
After news broke Wednesday that NFL hall-of-famer and podcaster Shannon Sharpe would not be returning to ESPN after settling a sexual assault lawsuit, Sharpe spoke about the timing of his exit, and his disappointment that the story broke when it did, on his Nightcap sports podcast.
“I found out this information a little early in the week,” Sharpe said on Nightcap Wednesday night. “And really the only thing that I really asked was, ‘Guys, can we wait until Monday? My brother [Sterling] is going into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.’”
Indeed, Sterling Sharpe, the former Green Bay Packers wide receiver, is set to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as part of the class of 2025 on Saturday, making the Sharpes the first brothers to receive the honor.
Meanwhile, former Denver Broncos tight end Shannon Sharpe has been in the headlines recently for settling a $50 million lawsuit brought by a woman who had accused him of rape. The former First Take contributor had temporarily stepped aside from his duties at ESPN earlier this year after the suit was first filed, with plans to return in time for the NFL season. But Wednesday news broke that Shannon Sharpe would not be returning to ESPN.
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And Shannon Sharpe said he was upset about the timing of people learning of his ESPN departure. “I really want it to be about him, and I want it to be about my family,” he said on Nightcap of this time around his brother’s induction ceremony. “I said ‘this coming out is going to overshadow everything that he’s worked his entire life for.’ And unfortunately, you know, it didn’t happen that way.”
“I just wish this thing could have waited until Monday because I hate the fact that I’m overshadowing my brother. First two brothers in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and this is what the headline’s going to be for the next couple days,” Shannon Sharpe added.
He said his brother, Sterling, had insisted no apology was required for the timing of news for his ESPN exit when one was personally offered on Wednesday, but one more apology came anyways on the podcast.
“I’m sorry that I upstaged you in this manner. You know that was never my intent. You’ve been my hero. You’ve been my role model from as long as I can remember,” Shannon Sharpe said.
Despite having left ESPN earlier this year, Sharpe has continued to release episodes of his Nightcap and Club Shay Shay podcasts.
