When Stephen A Smith finalized his new contract with ESPN earlier this year, reports suggested the First Take star would move beyond NBA coverage to make more NFL appearances going forward.
That expectation may be becoming reality.
At a media event this week, ESPN chair Jimmy Pitaro told Front Office Sports that Smith (along with the newly extended Chris Berman and the returning Rich Eisen) could have a larger presence on NFL coverage as the Worldwide Leader marches toward its first-ever Super Bowl in 2027.
“We are very open to Stephen getting more involved on the NFL,” said Pitaro. “We’ve had some exploratory conversations with him. We know that the league really likes Stephen. So there could be something to do there. That being said, we’re really happy with what we have in terms of NFL Live, Sunday [NFL] Countdown, Monday Night Countdown. We feel like we’re in a good spot right now. But there’s always room for someone like Stephen.”
There are a few notable nuggets in that Pitaro comment.
One, it would be somewhat surprising for Smith to be involved in NFL coverage. Smith came up as an NBA reporter and columnist at The Philadelphia Inquirer and has long been associated with basketball. At ESPN, he has recently become the star panelist on NBA Countdown.
As Pitaro noted, ESPN also has almost too much NFL analyst talent. Adding a big voice like Smith to MNF pregame coverage means even fewer reps for the network’s many reporters and former players.
On a different note, it is interesting that Pitaro publicly states that the NFL “really likes” Smith. Just recently, Jemele Hill claimed that the rumor at ESPN in her time there was that the NBA used to “block” Smith from appearing on signature basketball programs. That changed in 2021 when Smith joined Countdown.
If nothing else, this quote signals that Pitaro and Smith’s relationship is very strong. Whether it’s Shannon Sharpe’s legal saga or imagining a role covering the NFL, the pair appears to be in lockstep.
If Smith plays his cards right, that could mean a prominent role on the biggest day in ESPN’s history: Super Bowl Sunday.
About Brendon Kleen
Brendon is a Media Commentary staff writer at Awful Announcing. He has also covered basketball and sports business at Front Office Sports, SB Nation, Uproxx and more.