Shannon Sharpe temporarily stepping away from ESPN amid sexual misconduct allegations

Shannon Sharpe is temporarily stepping away from ESPN after being accused of sexual assault and battery in a $50 million lawsuit filed on Sunday. 

Sharpe, who has denied all allegations against him, released a statement on Thursday. 

"My statement is found here and this is the truth. The relationship in question was 100% consensual. At this juncture I am electing to step aside temporarily from my ESPN duties," Sharpe wrote in a statement. 

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"I will be devoting this time to my family, and responding and dealing with these false and disruptive allegations set against me. I plan to return to ESPN at the start of the NFL preseason. 

"I sincerely appreciate the overwhelming and ongoing support I have received from my family, fans, friends and colleagues."

ESPN also released a statement following Sharpe’s announcement, telling Front Office Sports that "this is a serious situation, and we agree with Shannon’s decision to step away."

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Sharpe was accused of assault, sexual assault, battery and sexual battery by a woman who was 19 in late 2024 and early 2025 when the alleged actions took place. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of a "Jane Doe" by Tony Buzbee in a Nevada state court, seeks $50 million in damages. 

Sharpe and his attorney, Lanny J. Davis, have denied all allegations against the Pro Football Hall of Famer. Davis also admitted during a press conference that a settlement worth $10 million was offered to the plaintiff in "the last month or so," but she pulled out. Davis said he and Sharpe were both blindsided by the civil suit. 

An audio clip was recently given to TMZ by Buzbee, which shows a man who appears to be Sharpe saying he would publicly choke the plaintiff. 

"Big black guy chokes small white woman," the man who allegedly is Sharpe says in the audio clip after a pause. 

"It's not a good look, Shannon," the accuser replies. 

Davis previously revealed a string of text messages that were allegedly from Doe, which he says shows a consensual relationship. Davis claims the relationship involved "fantasy" and "role-playing."

Davis released a lengthy statement, which Sharpe shared on his social media accounts on Monday. In the message, Davis shared the sexually explicit messages. 

Sharpe also released a video on X prior to Davis’ press conference on Tuesday, where he called the accuser’s legal action a "shakedown." He also mentioned that Buzbee plans to release an edited sex tape to support his client’s claims. 

"This is a shakedown. I’m going to be open, transparent, and defend myself because this isn’t right. This is all being orchestrated by Tony Buzbee," Sharpe said. "Tony Buzbee targets Black men, and I believe he is going to release a 30-second clip of a sex tape that tries to make me look guilty and play into every stereotype you could possibly imagine."

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Buzbee would release a statement after Sharpe’s video message and Davis’ press conference, confirming the latter’s remarks about the previous proposed settlement. He also denied that any video of the plaintiff was altered, saying Sharpe’s claim was "demonstrably false, but also desperate."

"An incredibly damning video does indeed exist," Buzbee added in his statement. "The contents of that video speak volumes about Mr. Sharpe and his behavior. That video, which will be played to the jury, is extremely problematic for Mr. Sharpe. Sharpe's team, as I anticipated, disclosed the existence of this video in an effort to try and get ahead of it that effort will fall flat."

Buzbee is well known for his settlements won for the women who accused Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson of sexual assault. 

"Sharpe’s team is now trying to discredit and dox her. Sharpe and his team are now, as anticipated, also attacking me. We are not going to be deterred by these tactics," Buzbee wrote in an Instagram caption. 

Davis said in his press conference that a counterclaim will be filed on behalf of Sharpe. 

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Sharpe's ESPN colleague on "First Take," Stephen A. Smith, recently broke his silence on the matter, calling it a "sad situation." He said he spoke with Sharpe, who "emphatically proclaims his innocence."

"According to Mr. Buzbee, his client emphatically proclaims his guilt," Smith added on his own podcast. "So where does that leave us? I'd love to tell you I know the answer to that question, but I don't."

Fox News' Paulina Dedaj contributed to this report.

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