Stephen A. Smith nods at Shannon Sharpe taking over 'First Take' as his $12M contract winds down

Stephen A. Smith seems pretty happy with Shannon Sharpe's addition to "First Take" after a lot of people watched his debut on the show. Smith also hinted at the possibility of Sharpe being his successor once his contract with ESPN expires.

In a post on Instagram, Smith shared screenshots of an August article from Front Office Sports speculating that Sharpe was his heir to the show. The longtime ESPN analyst tagged the Pro Football Hall of Famer, possibly agreeing with the notion that Sharpe should take over the show in a few years.

Front Office Sports reported three weeks ago that Smith only has two years left in his current deal with ESPN. Smith, who reportedly earns $12 million per year, might not be interested in renewing his contract and was only looking to expand his brand using acting and politics.

Stephen A. Smith is undoubtedly one of the biggest personalities under ESPN, so it would be a surprise if they don't renew his contract. Smith could also make more money elsewhere, as he has the gift of gab to entertain people. His show on YouTube is also starting to become popular.

As for Shannon Sharpe, he's finally back on television since leaving Skip Bayless and Fox Sports. Sharpe is now on First Take every Monday and Tuesday while working on his "Club Shay Shay" podcast with Colin Cowherd's The Volume channel. He's also in talks with FanDuel about a potential partnership.

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Stephen A. Smith and Shannon Sharpe's first day together attached viewers

Shannon Sharpe and Stephen A. Smith

Shannon Sharpe made his "First Take" debut on Monday, which was watched by around 727,000 people.

Notably, it was the show's second-highest rating of the year. Stephen A. Smith could not contain his excitement about this in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter:

"Just wanted to take a moment to give some love to my man Shannon Sharpe," Smith wrote. "Why? Because in his first day on the job, 'First Take' did 727K viewers.

"It's our 2nd-Highest rated show of the year, so ya still got some climbing to do, my brother! Just kidding. Welcome aboard bro! Let’s keep bringing it"

Smith and Sharpe's partnership seems to be a win for ESPN already while Skip Bayless' new "Dream Team" of Richard Sherman, Michael Irvin and Keyshawn Johnson at "Undisputed" would have to do more to gain ground in the ratings.

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