Stephen A Smith has spoken out on his First Take co-host, Shannon Sharpe, being accused of rape, refusing to condemn or defend his fellow sports broadcaster amid the heinous allegations.
A bombshell $50m lawsuit against Sharpe was launched Monday, with the former NFL tight end vehemently denying the claims. Sharpe has also vowed to sue the accuser for defamation.
‘I don’t know where this is going to go, I can’t speak to anything else,’ Smith said Tuesday. ‘I don’t know who Shannon Sharpe’s legal team is and what they’re suggesting.’
‘I imagine everything that has transpired has been at the behest of his lawyers, not just himself. I can tell you again that when I spoke to him, he is emphatic in stating his innocence, that this is a shakedown, to use his words.’
‘How wise is it top use those kinds of word when a civil matter of this nature is out there, when you have a podcast and you have advertisers and sponsors and you work for ESPN and they have advertisers and sponsors, I don’t know.’
Smith and Sharpe have worked together for a few years, ever since the former NFL tight end jumped to ESPN from Fox. Eyes on Smith have increased tenfold since his aspirations to be the Democratic nominee for President in 2028 gained some momentum.
Stephen A Smith has spoken out on his co-host Shannon Sharpe facing rape allegations
A bombshell lawsuit against Sharpe was launched Monday, with him denying the allegations
‘What can we say if any of us were in that position and we felt or were proclaiming that we were innocent? I don’t know,’ Smith continued. ‘And I’m not about to pretend. I just wanted to make sure that I echoed to all of you that the only reason I spoke on this issue is because he works with me two days a week.’
‘He’s on national television. He was on national television with me today. He was on national television with me yesterday when the story came out Sunday night. I didn’t know anything about it until we got on the air. But he was on-air.’
‘And if you know him in part because of all the work that he’s doing with me and what he’s doing in this industry, I know everybody’s been waiting like, “Stephen A, what you got to say about this?” I got to say what I just told you.’
‘I don’t know what’s happened. I know I got love for the brother. I know that I’m wishing that he’s innocent and all of this stuff goes away and he can continue to thrive with me on ESPN and thrive in his own platforms that he worked so diligently over the years to build.’
‘But anything else would be entirely irresponsible for me to speak on and I can’t do that. Yes I own this, this is my platform. But I also have a day job and I also understand what lawyers, what HR, and all those other things entail.’
‘What I said is all I can say and in all honesty, at this moment, it is all I know. I have no idea what direction ESPN and Walt Disney will go in when it comes to this matter. All I do know is, it won’t be me making the decision, it will be others upstairs.’
Sharpe attorney Lanny J. Davis has confirmed his client offered at least $10 million to settle rape accusations with the ex-girlfriend who is currently suing the Denver Broncos great in Nevada for $50 million.
Speaking on a conference call with reporters on Tuesday, the prestigious attorney said the plaintiff and her attorney, Tony Buzbee, rejected the offer, which was made before Davis took Sharpe on as a client.
Sharpe has vowed to fight the rape lawsuit filed against him in Nevada by an ex-girlfriend
High-profile attorney Lanny Davis (pictured) is representing Sharpe in the rape lawsuit
‘Perhaps her attorney was optimistic about the outcome,’ said Davis, who conceded the offer may have exceeded $10 million by multiples. ‘I would respectfully suggest there’s no grounds for optimism.’
‘It’s my reasonable inference,’ Davis said when asked if the timing of the lawsuit was related to the reported financial offers to Sharpe. ‘Others might disagree that they’re very related, that this plaintiff was looking for money.’
In his own Tuesday statement, Buzbee claimed ‘an incredibly damning video does indeed exist’ and its contents will ‘speak volumes about Mr. Sharpe and his behavior.’
Both Davis and his client have since demanded Buzbee release an unedited version of the footage, which they suggest will be deceptively changed to incriminate Sharpe.
‘Do not touch, do not tamper, do not alter that tape that we believe, without any doubt, was substantially edited, so that when it’s posted, as we expect it to be, we will immediately explain how edited and warped and distorted and out of context it is,’ Davis said. ‘We will get a copy of that tape, and then we will see whether it’s been tampered with.’
Buzbee has already denied altering the footage.
‘The statement from Sharpe’s newest lawyer falsely accuses Ms. Jane Doe of editing a video — a claim that is not only demonstrably false, but also desperate,’ Buzbee wrote. ‘The lawyer also suggests Ms. Doe refused to make the video available to Mr. Sharpe. Again, this assertion is easily proven untrue.
