New Blood! Shannon Sharpe's 'Undisputed' Replacement May Be an Ex-Athlete
Published June 6 2023, 1:15 p.m. ET
It’s hard to imagine Fox’s Undisputed without seeing Shannon Sharpe seated in front of Skip Bayless. However, fans of the show will have to get used to the idea of Shannon no longer being in the equation now that he has officially left the program.
In case you’ve been out of the loop, Shannon accepted a buyout agreement from Fox Sports and decided to take his talents elsewhere. His last show will air in June 2023 after the NBA Finals.
While fans are saddened by Shannon’s departure, many are wondering who will be next in line to fill Shannon’s shoes on the program. And of course, rumors of Shannon Sharpe’s replacement continue to spread like wildfire. Here’s the 4-1-1.
Shannon Sharpe on the red carpet
Who is Shannon Sharpe’s replacement on ‘Undisputed’?
Although no one has yet to be named as Shannon’s replacement, word on the street is that the new co-host may be an ex-athlete or another sports commentator.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers player Antonio Brown took to Twitter on May 31, 2023, to announce his interest in taking Shannon’s place on Undisputed. At this time, it’s unknown if Antonio will be considered.
Sources told Front Office Sports that SPEAK co-host and former Pittsburgh running back, LeSean McCoy, is one of a few names being thrown into the ring for the job.
LeSean, who already works under the Fox umbrella, is thought to be a great candidate since he is an ex-player and already has experience in the hosting field.
Interestingly, LeSean is not the only co-host from SPEAK rumored to be considered for the golden opportunity. The outlet shared that Joy Taylor and Emmanuel Acho are potential candidates for the gig.
SteelersNation (via odds posted in a 7-1 bet on SportsBetting.ag on Monday, June 5, 2023) shared that Ryan Clark, ESPN analyst and host of The Pivot Podcast, and former Steelers safety, is in talks of possibly taking the job as well.
Other candidates for the job based on the betting site include former NBA player Kendrick Perkins with 5-1 odds, radio host Chris Russo with 6-1 odds, and Nick Wright.
Sources reveal that Skip Bayless will have the final say on who gets the ‘Undisputed’ co-hosting gig.
Although folks continue to speculate on who would get the gig, it appears that Undisputed co-host Skip Bayless is a key decision-maker.
Sources told Front Office Sports that Skip will likely not choose a co-host who will “out-debate him during extended tryouts” or “challenges him” in any way, shape, or form.
As such, sources reveal that Skip will ultimately have the final say on who gets the gig.
Given that there were several moments of contention between Shannon and Skip on the show, we can see why Skip has reservations about a new co-host who will challenge him. However, the point of a sports talk show is to welcome dissenting opinions on various matters.
Either way, we’ll be interested to see who gets the gig and hopefully, they can share their opinions without having to fall in line with Skip.
