Skip Bayless apparently wants nothing more to do with Stephen A. Smith.
After Bayless personally criticized Shannon Sharpe's playing career on FS1's “Undisputed” in December 2022, leading to the Hall of Fame tight end leaving the network last year, Smith called Bayless to let him know how “wrong” he had acted.
Smith is Chris Carter's “Fully Loaded” PodcastBayless did not return the call and appeared to cut Smith off.
“Addressing the elephant in the room … I understand a lot of people can't stand him,” Smith said of Bayless. Terrible announcement“I told Skip to his face, 'Don't say things like you said about Troy Aikman,' and don't call Chris Bosh 'Spice Bosh.' [Carter] That's how it is… he's arguing with you about football points, so what are you arguing about? There's no need to do that.
“And I thought he was wrong about Shannon. I thought what he did to Shannon was obviously wrong. And I called him and he never contacted me again. So I stopped contacting him.”
Smith, 56, said he had spoken in person with Bayless, 72, once in the past 12 to 18 months.
“We don't really talk much anymore,” Smith said. “He got upset about something I allegedly said to J.J. Redick and attacked me on his podcast for like 45 minutes. I then flew out to California to meet with him in person and we resolved that issue.”
“I would never hold anything against him, but our relationship has certainly changed since that moment, but that doesn't mean I don't love him any less, or want anything bad to happen to him. He's just moving in a different direction, and that's what he chose to do, and that's fine.”
Smith and Bayless were stars of ESPN's “First Take” before Bayless moved to FS1 in 2016 and started “Undisputed” with Sharpe.
After Sharp left FS1 to join “First Take” last year, Bayless continued the show with a rotating cast of panelists, led by Keyshawn Johnson.
Bayless left the network last month.
