Shannion Sharpe’s former teammate and friend, Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Lewis came out publicly about the reasons why they aren’t as close, despite Sharpe standing arm and arm with Lewis as he faced double murder charges that could have altered the trajectory of his entire career back in 2000.
Speaking on a recent episode of the “PBD Podcast,” Lewis chastised Sharpe for the type of content he produces as well as now drinking alcohol after never drinking in the past. When asked if he believed Shannon would be good at this sports media stuff, Lewis unloaded.
“No I’m not surprised, I’m shocked at his content,” Lewis said. “In a million years the things that Shannon did now or said now I would’ve never believed he would do that. Like, drinking. Shannon in my entire career, I never saw Shannon with a drink, ever, and then I started to watch him and kind of went our own separate ways.”
“You’re gonna take that, and I can’t take that route, and that route is so worldly that you become popular because you’re talking about ignorance and a lot of the times the gossip conversations that they’re having about people, I’m just not gonna do that,” Lewis added. “I’m in the business for that, I’m in the business of trying to teach what is to be a better man and get back to the kingdom.”
Shannon Sharpe Responds To Criticism By Former Friends Such as Ray Lewis
Sharpe took a moment on his “Nightcap” podcast to accuse some people of being of being front runners who abandoned him when things got rough. He didn’t mention Lewis’ name, but everyone knew who he was addressing.
“Whatever transpired I’ll bite my tongue, I’ll be the bigger person. It is a low hanging fruit. You know how I know, Because ya boy you look at him, he’s low hanging fruit. There’s a lot of people taking a shot at ya’ boy. Y’all can have it. Y’all got me. It’s alright. It’s Ok. We’re gonna be alright, Ocho.
“I coulda told you that,” said his faithful friend and co-host Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson.
Sharpe continued:
“Everybody want to pile on. Everybody want to jump on now. We got em’ now Ocho. Let me get a lick now. Everybody wants to get a lick now because when ya boy was doing good, not a lot of people had something to say. Now everybody got something to say.”
Social Media Shows Little Sympathy For Shannon Sharpe: Defends Ray Lewis
Unc’s made similar comments in the past since his career took a turn for the worse as a result of his questionable and self-destructive actions. Social media wasn’t buying it and many came to the defense of Lewis.
“Unc wants grown ass men to massage his ego,” one fan posted underneath the video clip on X. “Ray Lewis didn’t say anything egregious. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong in calling you out for acting out of character and trying to be a flawed youth at an old age. Just act your age.”
Another said: “Ray didn’t say anything wrong…he spoke about the person he knew as a friend and teammate who wouldn’t touch drinking and toxicity,” said another fan defending Lewis’ comments.
Shannon Sharpe & Ray Lewis Beef Date Back To 2016
This isn’t the first spat between Lewis and Sharpe. The former teammates got into a public exchange when during the height of the Colin Kaepernick protest in 2016, Lewis, who once told the former San Francisco 49ers QB to stick to sports and keep his social activism off the field, took a knee with several Ravens players before a game against the Jaguars in London. Lewis’ contradictory actions drew the ire of Sharpe, who pretty much called him a hypocrite. To which, Lewis didn’t hesitate to respond.
“I dropped on two knees, both knees, so I could simply honor God in the midst of chaos,” Lewis said.
“Sharpe goes out and tells someone why he’s so disappointed in me. First of all, I’m 42 years old with six kids. I’m a grown man, so to be disappointed in me really sparked me. Now, all of these people are going off of his soundbites of how he’s so shocked that I dropped on a knee to protest. Really? You’ve got my phone number, brotha,” he added.
They say you find out who your real friends are in your darkest moments. Shannon Sharpe’s list of people he can depend on has decreased ever since he settled his $50M lawsuit with 20-year-old OnlyFans model Gabby Zuniga. It rocked his career and his credibility and also destroyed some lucrative business ventures that NFL Hall of Famer, former ESPN “First Take” co-host and “Nightcap” and “Uncle Shay Shay” podcast host had brewing. Some say to the tune of $100M.
Stephen A. Smith immediately jumped ship, and regardless of what support he shows Shannon behind the scene, his public support for his former co-host is non-existent and as of now they have no working relationship. Anytime, someone you consider a friend chooses to make a business move and change the nature of the relationship, it can be disheartening. Especially when you’re at a low point and they were by your side when you were up.
