Ex-NFL star cut loose by ESPN just days after settling $50M rape lawsuit

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American sports broadcasting powerhouse ESPN reportedly has parted ways with Shannon Sharpe just days after the NFL great settled a bombshell rape lawsuit brought against him earlier this year.

The Athletic first reported the split between the so-called Worldwide Leader and the Hall of Fame tight end on Wednesday.

Sharpe initially joined the network as part of the First Take program in the fall of 2023 after leaving FS1’s Undisputed with Skip Bayless earlier in the year.

But the 57-year-old legend was rocked by the bombshell civil lawsuit in April, in which it was alleged that he committed assault, sexual assault, sexual battery and battery.

The unidentified plaintiff accused Sharpe of sexually assaulting her several times beginning in late 2024.

Sharpe denied “all allegations of coercion or misconduct” in a statement through his legal counsel, also sharing intimate details of the relationship and graphic messages sent to him from the accuser, according to his lawyer, Lanny J. Davis.

WARNING: Explicit sexual details

Among the messages in the statement, the woman — who was only identified as Jane Doe in the court filing — allegedly told Sharpe that she wanted him to “put a dog collar around my neck” and “tie me up and do bad things to me,” while also asking for money to come and visit him.

“The evidence paints a clear picture: this was a consensual, adult relationship that included role-playing, sexual language, and fantasy scenarios,” Davis said.

Sharpe took leave from ESPN a few days after news of the lawsuit broke.

“At this juncture I am electing to step aside temporarily from my ESPN duties. I will be devoting this time to my family, and responding and dealing with these false and disruptive allegations set against me,” Sharpe said in April.

Sharpe had initially said that he would return to ESPN at the start of the NFL pre-season, which begins on Thursday.