As contract negotiations between ESPN and Stephen A. Smith continue, his conduct during those talks has apparently earned him some brownie points.
Smith’s contract is set to expire and the 56-year-old appears to be adamant about staying with ESPN for the foreseeable future.
Sources said FrontOffice Sports that Smith ‘is earning a lot of respect from ESPN management for the way he is handling his contract negotiations, as well as his continued willingness to do whatever it takes to keep the four letters at the top.’
FOS also noted that his team-based approach to these negotiations is different from the antics and pranks occasionally engaged in by his colleague and renowned media personality Pat McAfee.
As a source told the publication: ” I have to give credit to Stephen A., who has used the fact that McAfee is a bad team player to his own advantage. He just brings in people from ESPN; McAfee brings in Shams (Charania).
Stephen A. Smith could be on track to earn between $20 and $25 million a year
Reports indicate that Smith’s attitude is that of a “team player” unlike Pat McAfee.
‘That’s the kind of thing Stephen A. Smith would never do. Leave it to Pat McAfee to frustrate ESPN executives so much that they say, ‘Fuck him. Stephen A. is a good team player.’
Smith could be on his way to becoming the company’s first $100 million man, especially considering the number of roles he plays as a studio analyst at ESPN.
Considering a particularly strong first half of 2024 for the company and the salaries of its contemporaries ($85 million over five years for McAfee, for example), that figure might not be as unattainable as it seems.
According to FOS sources, Smith’s new compensation “could be in the range of $20-$25 million per year for five years.”
Smith and McAfee have sometimes seemed like polar opposites, and even had a potential showdown earlier this year.
FOS sources said that ‘ESPN brass loves the 37-year-old McAfee’s appeal to younger viewers; his performance on College GameDay; and his ability to land top-notch guests, including Aaron Rodgers, Bill Belichick, Nick Saban, Peyton Manning and Caitlin Clark.’
But McAfee’s tendency to lose his temper has been an eyesore. He’s had to apologize for his role in the Aaron Rodgers-Jimmy Kimmel feud and recently for calling Caitlin Clark a “white bitch.”
He also publicly attacked ESPN executive Norby Williamson, calling him a “rat” who was trying to “sabotage” his show in January of this year. Williamson eventually left the company.