Several disagreements between Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith have put a strain on their friendship. It all began when the latter disapproved of the former’s comments over Shannon Sharpe’s NFL career. Recently, Smith appeared in the Fully Loaded podcast and revealed that they don’t speak much anymore. He said it had been over a year and a half since their last conversation. So, how did their fallout happen? Here are the details.
Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith feud explained
Their feud reportedly began when Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe engaged in a heated argument in Undisputed during a Tom Brady debate segment in 2022. Bayless criticized the former tight end’s NFL run publicly and compared it to Brady’s career. He said, “[Brady]’s still playing at a high level at 45 when you had to stop at 35, that’s the point.” Unfortunately, their brewing tensions led to Sharpe quitting from the FS1’s titular show. (via Huff Post)
Subsequently, Bayless disrespecting Sharpe’s career didn’t sit well with Smith. In a recent conversation with the Fully Loaded podcast, he revealed that he reached out to Bayless, condemning his harsh comments over Sharpe’s career. However, he didn’t receive any response from him, and therefore, he stopped bothering him.
Moreover, their friendship strained even more when Bayless got upset with Smith for something he allegedly said to JJ Redick. He slammed him for 45 minutes on his podcast, leading to the latter flying to California. Smith went to address the situation face-to-face, and they instantly resolved their matter. Although they sorted out their issues, their friendship isn’t what it used to be.
Despite their rift, Smith holds no grudges. In the same podcast, he added, “But it doesn’t mean I don’t love him; it doesn’t mean that I wish anything negative upon him because I don’t. But he’s just going in a different direction. That’s what he chose to do, and that’s cool.”