Stephen A. Smith ‘closes in on $120 million ESPN contract’ after rejecting opening $18m-a-year offer
Stephen A. Smith appears to be staying with ESPN as he enters the final year of his contract.
The two sides have been negotiating a new deal for months, and Variety is now reporting that a final agreement may be just weeks away. The contract could create a ‘first-look’ agreement for Smith’s other potential endeavors at the network, a source told Variety.
The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand is reporting that the deal is in the range of six years and $120 million.
ESPN has declined comment on the matter.
Previously the Wall Street Journal reported Smith rejected an $18 million-a-year offer from ESPN. Multiple outlets have since reported he’s seeking $25 million annually from ESPN as part of his next deal.
The 56-year-old is already a popular podcaster and ESPN host, working on such programs as First Take and the World Wide Leader’s in-studio NBA coverage. There has been some speculation he could join Inside the NBA when the popular TNT-produced show moves to ESPN next season, but network president Burke Magnus shot down that notion in an interview with Sports Illustrated.
Stephen A. Smith appears to be staying with ESPN, according to a new report from Variety
ESPN may not have been the only suitor for Smith, who has recently dipped his toe into political infotainment with appearances on Sean Hannity’s Fox News show and Bill Maher’s ‘Club Random.’ The New York native could have created his own platform, with the help of his agency, WME, according to one sports media insider.
‘I think what ESPN is up against is the possibility that WME could go out and create an architecture where Stephen A. has a podcast, a deal with this, a deal with that, whatever, and at the end of the day, it’s $20 million a year,’ James Andrew Miller told SI Media’s Jimmy Traina in June.
‘Smith currently has a podcast partnership with iHeartMedia, and recently produced a documentary for ESPN about the history of sports punditry.
‘I do believe there are enough possibilities … that Stephen A. can get outside of ESPN and even outside an exclusive deal with another network that could make him very happy and very rich,’ Miller added.
As Smith told Front Office Sports in September, he hopes to follow in his idol Howard Cosell’s footsteps by lending his voice to ESPN’s football coverage.
‘I don’t want to insult the legacy of the great Howard Cosell, who’s somebody that I idolized. But that’s what I want to do,’ Smith told Front Office Sports.
But unlike Cosell, who did play by play for ABC in addition to other various roles from 1953 until 1985, Smith doesn’t want to be in the booth.
‘When I think about the NFL, I’m not talking about being in the booth with [ESPN Monday Night Football announcers] Troy Aikman and Joe Buck,’ Smith said. ‘You don’t mess with that chemistry; you leave that alone. But I’m unapologetic about what I want.
‘I would love to be a part of Monday Night Football. I would love to work with [Monday Night Countdown’s new cast including] Jason Kelce and Scott Van Pelt and Ryan Clark and my man Marcus Spears. I mean, two of those guys are on First Take every week.’
Obviously the decision on what to do with Smith is up to ESPN and chairman Jimmy Pitaro.
‘Of course, I believe that I can do it,’ Smith told Front Office Sports. ‘When you think about Howard Cosell and what he meant to the business, do I believe I have the potential to mean nearly as much? Yes, I do. So that’s my opinion. It doesn’t mean that opinion is shared by others. We’ll find out …’
