Last weekend, the Cleveland Browns made a trade with the Denver Broncos to acquire Jerry Jeudy, who as it turns out, is quite the polarizing player.
That was evident in comments made by Broncos legend Mark Schlereth, whose thoughts on the wide receiver could best be summed up with “Good riddance!” As members of the Cleveland media dug into Jeudy’s past, many apparently contacted former wide receiver-turned-NFL Network analyst Steve Smith Sr., who was infamously involved in a spat with the Alabama product last season.
To say that Smith was less than enthused with the requests would be an understatement.
“Hey, just need to make an announcement: All y’all Cleveland media need to stop DM’ing, stop hitting my representatives asking would I come on your radio shows and all that stuff to talk about Jerry Jeudy,” Smith said in a video posted to X (formerly Twitter). “What y’all need to start talking about is how the backup quarterback for the Cleveland Browns took them to the playoffs. Deshaun Watson is injured and getting back healthy.
“So stop trying to use me as your clickbait to get people to listen to your shows. Why won’t y’all start doing your job? Don’t call me asking me about some traction of some viral moment and then you try to capitalize on that by utilizing me. Stop trying to use me and just do it on your own merit. Do it on your own content and your own analytics. Just good football talk. Stop trying to use Steve… Cleveland market, tighten up. Talk football. Stop trying to be clickbait. This isn’t The Young and the Restless. A lot of downtime. Get a life.”
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Considering Smith’s position as an NFL Network analyst, it’s curious that he would take issue with local radio shows contacting him for his analysis of a player.
If the former Carolina Panthers wideout simply moved past his beef with Jeudy — as he indicated last fall — then that’s understandable. But it’s also understandable why members of the Cleveland media would turn to him for his analysis of a player he has clearly had strong opinions on.
As somebody who lives in the market, I can assure Smith that there has already been no shortage of conversations regarding Watson and Joe Flacco on Cleveland airwaves this offseason. And it’s hardly uncommon for radio shows to turn to former players for their analysis after the local team acquires a new player (Schlereth, for what it’s worth, appeared on a Cleveland radio show earlier this week).
Smith urged members of the Cleveland media to “start doing your job,” but the reality is that talking to expert analysts — like himself — to learn more about players is them doing just that. Smith is certainly under no obligation to fulfill their requests, but he shouldn’t be surprised that people in Cleveland are interested in hearing his opinion on Jeudy.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.