$100 Million Earning Stephen A. Smith Gets Roasted For Mixing Up WR Christian Kirk for Slain Charlie Kirk – “Nasty Mistake There”

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith has mixed up players in the past, but most of those instances were within the football community.

$100 Million Earning Stephen A. Smith Gets Roasted For Mixing Up WR Christian Kirk for Slain Charlie Kirk – “Nasty Mistake There”

Christian Kirk, Charlie Kirk, and Stephen A. Smith (Sleeper NFL/X/Imago)

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Usually, ESPN executive producer Stephen A. Smith does an exceptional job of analyzing football games to then speak about them the next day on his morning show, First Take.

There have been quite a few instances where the 58-year-old has been exposed for not knowing the complete picture and speaking based on what his producers informed him. Despite all that, the Queens, New York, native has done a commendable job, leading First Take, and helping many other shows surge in ratings over the years.

That is why ESPN gave him a $100 million deal to make him their highest-paid employee last year. The network was not phased when he was caught not working, while he was on the clock, as he always had a bizarre excuse ready.

Earlier, while speaking about the Houston Texans’ performance in their Wild Card win against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Stephen A. Smith had a moment of madness for which he did not have an excuse.

We saw Charlie Kirk catch 8 receptions for 144 yards… I’m sorry, Christian Kirk, I apologize. Oh my God. Christian Kirk.

Stephen A. Smith said

The analyst backtracked and apologized only when First Take host Shae Cornette corrected him. Otherwise, it is possible the father of two would have continued mixing up the Texans’ wide receiver for the slain political activist.

Fans troll Stephen A. Smith for hilarious mix-up

Stephen A. Smith, just like many people in the world, does mix up similar names at times. But for him to confuse a football player for someone who is no longer in this world, and was not remotely associated with the sport, was a major mix-up.

Even though some fans questioned why ESPN was paying him that much money to confuse two people who weren’t remotely connected, others took the chance to troll him for this mistake. Check out examples of those reactions below:

To Stephen A. Smith’s credit, when Shae Cornette made him realize what an egregious mix-up it was, he did seemingly apologize sincerely. Many fans took note of that, understanding that it was an honest mistake.

After all, Christian Kirk is not as popular as the political activist who was brutally assassinated last year in Utah. Considering how Smith has been actively talking politics on his podcast, Charlie Kirk‘s name may have been the only Kirk on his mind.

Christian Kirk and CJ Stroud’s connection could be the untapped solution for Texans

This entire conversation came about when Smith and his First Take colleagues were talking about the Houston Texans and how they managed to run the Pittsburgh Steelers into the ground.

Christian Kirk and CJ Stroud
Christian Kirk and CJ Stroud (Image via DraftKings Network/X)

Other than their stellar league-leading defense, it was the offense that surprised quite a few people. Quarterback CJ Stroud managed 100 yards more than Aaron Rodgers despite throwing a similar number of passes.

The majority of that came from his connections with Christian Kirk. Those 144 yards and one touchdown helped pile the pressure on the home team.

Usually, the likes of Nico Collins and Dalton Schultz are Stroud’s favorite targets. Now, with Kirk proving he can step up when called upon, it gives them an added option when they meet the New England Patriots in the Divisional round.

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