Did ESPN fire Shannon Sharpe after his accidental adult Instagram stream?

Depending on which side of the internet you usually frequent, you either know Shannon Sharpe as a former-NFL-star-turned-sports-commentator or as the guy from all the memes. Regardless, you’ve probably heard of his accidental sex tape.

Sharpe’s three million followers were surprised by a notification on Wednesday informing them the TV personality was going live on Instagram. What they certainly didn’t expect to hear when they opened the stream was the man performing sexual acts with an unknown woman he calls “Michelle” in the recording. The phone camera was turned towards the floor.

Although the three-time Super Bowl champion initially claimed he had been hacked, he eventually confessed it was his voice in the audio, telling his Night Cap podcast listeners he felt “extremely embarrassed.” “As someone who is very private, having such an intimate moment broadcasted to the world is humiliating,” he continued, explaining that he had never used Instagram Live before and didn’t even know how it worked. Sharpe clarified he was not sorry for engaging in the act, but that it had been made public and said he learned the news from his (presumably horrified) publicist who called him minutes after the live-stream began.

Was Shannon Sharpe’s Instagram live staged?

Many, including rapper Cam’ron of the It Is What It Is podcast and anti-LGBT sports columnist Jason Whitlock, have speculated the blunder was staged and that the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens alum concocted it to beat homosexuality allegations. They accused Sharpe of being disingenuous in his confessed “embarrassment,” since he used the occurrence to sell special merch (including “Night Clap” and “Night Cap 69” t-shirts) and attract viewers to his shows.

Earlier this year, comic Mike Epps said he refused to appear on Sharpe’s Club Shay Shay podcast because he didn’t want the host to sit across from him and “look at [his] balls.” He also called him a “Madea”(the female fictional character played by Tyler Perry in a wig and dress). In response, the 56-year-old said he did not care about the gay comments, but that he would confront Epps in person for his lies about being invited on the show.

Many such comments have been made about the NFL star over the years, and even his Night Cap co-host Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson joked that he was glad the person in the sex tape was a “Michelle” and not a “Michael.” “It’s never been a Michael,” an awkward Sharpe replied, later joking that Katt Williams called him to say “You ain’t gay today.”

Is Shannon Sharpe still a part of ESPN’s First Take after his Instagram sex scandal?

Rumors have flown both ways regarding Shannon Sharpe’s future with ESPN and when he didn’t show up on Thursday’s edition of First Take, people were convinced he had been fired. Front Office Sports has reported, however, that Sharpe’s planned schedule with the show only includes Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays, and that the network considers the matter closed and is satisfied with its employee’s explanation. The football player also said one of the things he did upon finding out what had happened was call his agent and ESPN.

Fans of ESPN’s programming might recall that former basketball star Paul Pierce was fired from the network for violating a morals clause in his contract after he live-streamed a party involving female dancers on Instagram in 2021. People are now wondering whether the sports channel will maintain the same criteria with Sharpe, but, although the live-stream content was similar, the football player maintains that his broadcast was accidental, unlike Pierce’s.

Sharpe started working with ESPN in 2023 after leaving Fox Sports and signed a new multi-year contract extension in June 2024, ensuring a lengthy relationship with the popular sports channel. He is expected to appear in next Monday’s episode of First Take as normal.