Shannon Sharpe is facing fresh allegations of choking a woman, while a $50 million rape lawsuit filed by an ex-girlfriend against him continues to intensify.
The 56-year-old is being sued by one of his ex-girlfriends over claims he repeatedly raped her during the relationship. Sharpe was also heard threatening to choke the accuser in two alleged audio recordings.
Sharpe has vehemently denied the allegations, countering that she is merely trying to score a major financial settlement.
While the former NFL tight end continues to contend with the bombshell claims, new allegations from his past have emerged.
Sharpe has been accused of allegedly choking a female production assistant in the Fox Sports workplace during his time as a co-host of ‘Undisputed’ alongside Skip Bayless, according to Front Office Sports.
Sharpe has also denied that accusation. ‘There was no incident of choking involving Shannon on the FS1 set,’ a spokesperson for Sharpe told DailyMail.com.
Shannon Sharpe is facing fresh allegations of choking a female Fox Sports employee
Sharpe co-hosted ‘Undisputed’ on FS1 with Skip Bayless (left) from 2016 to 2023
Sharpe and Fox reportedly settled with the accuser for ‘several hundred thousand dollars’
‘On one occasion, he and a few colleagues were involved in some light physical interaction in a playful context. Fox Sports later chose to resolve the matter privately.’
DailyMail.com has contacted Fox Sports for comment.
Sharpe and the network reportedly settled with the accuser for ‘several hundred thousand dollars,’ the report added.
In 2010, he briefly stepped away from his role on CBS’s NFL Today studio show after he was accused of sexual assault. Sharpe later returned to the network after a restraining order was dismissed.
Sharpe worked alongside Bayless, who is currently facing a sexual harassment lawsuit of his own, on the Fox Sports show, ‘Undisputed,’ from 2016 to 2023. It is unclear when the alleged incident took place.
After his split from the network, Sharpe joined ESPN’s ‘First Take’ as a recurring panelist in September 2023.
However, his future on the network was cast into doubt earlier this week after his 20-something ex-girlfriend filed the rape lawsuit against him in Nevada on Sunday.
Sharpe announced earlier on Thursday that he would be stepping aside from his ESPN duties, even while continuing to deny the allegations of rape and abuse.
Sharpe said: ‘My statement is found here and this is the truth. The relationship in question was 100% consensual.
There are reportedly doubts over Shannon Sharpe’s ESPN future amid the $50m rape lawsuit
‘At this juncture I am electing to step aside temporarily from my ESPN duties.
‘I will be devoting this time to my family, and responding and dealing with these false and disruptive allegations set against me. I plan to return to ESPN at the start of the NFL preseason.
‘I sincerely appreciate the overwhelming and ongoing support I have received from my family, fans, friends and colleagues.’
The accuser, who is listed as Jane Doe in her suit, claims she was abused by Sharpe over the course of their near one-year relationship, which began when she was 20 and he was 53 back in 2023.
The first alleged rape is said to have taken place in October of last year, with the lawsuit claiming he forced himself on her as she ‘was crying and sobbing.’ Sharpe is accused of raping her again in January after arriving at her home with promises of Christmas and birthday gifts.
Since news of the lawsuit first broke on Monday, both the Super Bowl winner and the accuser’s respective attorneys have brought shocking new evidence to light over the past 48 hours, including a text which shows her telling him ‘no means no’ after an alleged rape in January.
Audio footage provided to the Daily Mail Tuesday also captures him threatening to choke the woman who is now suing him, which his lawyer has claimed was ‘in the heat of the moment’ while insisting the violent threat was ‘not intended.’
ESPN finally broke their silence on the scandalized Sharpe and said in a statement quoted by The Athletic: ‘This is a serious situation, and we agree with Shannon’s decision to step away.’
Sharpe says that he will use his time away to dealing with ‘false and disruptive allegations’
Shannon Sharpe and Big Boi attend ESPN First Take at Clark Atlanta University on November 8
While Sharpe seems insistent that he will eventually make it back on the airwaves, there are now huge questions on if he will ever return for ESPN.
Until today, it had been business as usual for Sharpe, a three-time Super Bowl winner, who has remained defiant in the face of the accusations that could ruin his career.
He continued with his First Take appearances, with Wednesday and Thursday’s absences part of his regular schedule, the organization said.
On Wednesday night, Sharpe said on social media that he’ll be at the NFL Draft in Green Bay, interviewing legends of the game and some of the first round picks. Soon after posting his statement about his ESPN work, Sharpe’s ‘Night Cap’ account kicked into life confirming he will still be at the Draft.
But his place on First Take has fallen under intensifying scrutiny, with his co-host Stephen A. Smith subtly distancing himself from the man he recruited to join him on the show in 2023.
Speaking about the scandal on his own YouTube show, Smith questioned some of the methods Sharpe and his lawyer have taken.
‘On one hand, going on the offensive to defend himself, I completely understand where Shannon Sharpe is coming from,’ Smith said.
‘On the other hand, when his legal team issued out the press release on X, they mentioned her name and revealed some of those explicit text messages, that was uncomfortable, and I don’t know if that’s a strategy that would work.
‘I know, and I can tell you all I spoke to Shannon, not in details, but I spoke to him, and he emphatically proclaims his innocence.’
Stephen A. Smith appeared to subtly distance himself from Sharpe’s case earlier this week
On Thursday morning, an old clip resurfaced on social media of Sharpe bragging about seemingly sleeping with an OnlyFans model.
‘You know who Sky Bri is Ocho?’ Sharpe is seen asking former Cincinnati Bengals star Chad ‘Ochocinco’ Johnson on their ‘Nightcap’ YouTube podcast.
The name Sharpe mentioned belongs to an OnlyFans model. However, she is not the Jane Doe accusing Sharpe of rape in the aforementioned Nevada lawsuit.
DailyMail.com’s attempts to reach Bri have been unsuccessful. Sharpe’s legal team did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment on Thursday.