“We valued him MORE,” Ex-ESPN President exposes reason for cutting off Skip Bayless’ iconic partnership with Stephen A. Smith from ‘First Take’

Ex ESPN President John Skipper gives reason for why Undisputed host Skip Bayless left for Fox Sports back in 2016.

“We valued him MORE,” Ex-ESPN President exposes reason for cutting off Skip Bayless’ iconic partnership with Stephen A. Smith from ‘First Take’

Skip Bayless and Stephen A Smith (image credits via Sporting News)

Two of the biggest names among NFL sportscasters are Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith. Both of them are masters of their trades and are hugely followed by numerous fans as well as players. Both host shows which cover major topics throughout the NFL season.

However, there was a time when these two worked together for ESPN’s First Take show. They worked together for four years spanning from 2012-2016 and have put on some great shows together, as they argued and debated over the hot topics in the NFL world.

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But that would soon come to an end as Skip Bayless decided to leave ESPN and join hands with Fox Sports. Many wondered why such a power-packed duo would part especially after getting such tremendous success. Well, that question has now been answered after The Athletic, published a story about why the two decided to go their separate ways.

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John Skipper reveals truth about Skip Bayless and Stephen A Smith parting

Skip Bayless and Stephen A Smith (image credits via Sporting News)
Skip Bayless and Stephen A Smith (image credits via Sporting News)

Former ESPN President John Skipper has now revealed that they had underappreciated the contributions of Skip Bayless. For them at that point of time, Stephen A Smith was the star of the show and Bayless was just in a more supporting role. They were wrong in that evaluation and let him go.

“We waited too long,” Skipper said. “We valued Stephen A. more than we valued Skip. … We just felt that Skip was the foil and the star of the show was Stephen A.”

Stephen A Smith has responded as well to the article published and said it was just an ‘endorsement’ for Skip Bayless. He even said that opinions from people who were no longer associated with the show should not be considered.“It was basically a puff piece and an endorsement for Skip Bayless. I have no problem with a nice piece for Skip Bayless…but when you’re writing a piece about First Take and you’re talking to everybody from the past, what exactly is it that you’re trying to say?”

The two have had some bad blood between them but last year both acknowledged their love and respect for each other.

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