Skip Bayless-Shannon Sharpe relationship reportedly at an ‘all-time low’

After more than six years of screaming with Skip Bayless on FS1’s Undisputed, has Shannon Sharpe finally had enough?

Bayless did what he does best Monday night, sparking outrage by playing the role of contrarian. As Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin tragically suffered cardiac arrest, the entire world placed humanity above the game and knew the NFL had to suspend the Monday Night Football matchup. But as everyone unanimously leaned in one direction, Bayless grossly relished the opportunity to be polarizing.

“No doubt the NFL is considering postponing the rest of this game – but how?” Bayless asked on Twitter. “This late in the season, a game of this magnitude is crucial to the regular-season outcome… which suddenly seems so irrelevant.”

After the controversial tweet, Bayless was on-air for Tuesday morning’s live taping of Undisputed on FS1, but noticeably missing was Shannon Sharpe, and the absence may have occurred at a tipping point in their relationship. According to Michael McCarthy of Front Office Sports, sources have claimed the relationship between Bayless and Sharpe has deteriorated to an “all-time low.”

In recent weeks, Bayless and Sharpe have had multiple blow-ups on camera. And while those blow-ups are part of Undisputed’s contrived theatrics, the debates became increasingly tense with Sharpe even accusing Bayless of taking “personal shots” by disrespecting his NFL playing career. Sharpe and Bayless appeared at odds again Monday night. As Bayless sparked outrage with his polarizing tweet, Sharpe offered a much more measured and considered assessment of the tragedy that was unfolding on Monday Night Football.

https://twitter.com/ShannonSharpe/status/1610103303253422082

“Please keep Damar Hamlin and his family in your thoughts and prayers,” Sharpe tweeted. “The NFL doesn’t have a manual on how to proceed after an incident like this.”

Tuesday morning, Sharpe left Bayless to host Undisputed by himself and his absence was glaring. Just as glaring, was Sharpe liking a tweet from Charles Woodson that read “Undisputed is unwatchable without Shannon Sharpe.”

Bayless was left with the opportunity to apologize, show remorse, or admit that he made a mistake by questioning how the NFL could postpone the Monday Night Football game. Instead, Bayless used his solo airtime on FS1 to claim his tweet was “misconstrued,” and admitted it was a Fox boss, not his conscience, who convinced him to clarify the controversial tweet.

Is there a chance Sharpe’s absence was a scheduled off-day? Sure, there’s a chance, albeit a highly unlikely one considering Bayless was left to host the debate show without a debate partner. Typically, Bayless and Sharpe coordinate their time off. And Sharpe, a Pro Football Hall-of-Famer, scheduling a vacation day the morning after what was supposed to be the biggest NFL game of the regular season would be an interesting programming decision.

Bayless sought attention and ratings for his show when he played his usual role of contrarian Monday night. But maybe, Sharpe is finally getting tired of playing along.

[FOS]