Shannon Sharpe drops update on return to television amid rumors of joining Stephen A Smith at ESPN 

On May 31, Fox Sports shockingly announced that Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe, who had been co-hosting "Undisputed" with Skip Bayless, would be leaving its fold.

No official reason was given, but it is widely believed to be related to comments Bayless made about the collapse of Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin during a Monday Night Football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, which Sharpe did not take very well.

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Shannon Sharpe gives timeline on TV return amidst ESPN rumors

Since then, rumors have circulated about where Sharpe will end up next, and he gave a hint on X on Monday:

I’ll be bck b4 NFL kicks off. Do miss talking about things that’s happened in the last month tho. Appreciate the patience and support 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾

According to rumors, his most likely destination is ESPN, where he will replace Keyshawn Johnson and potentially Michael Irvin as a football analyst on Stephen A. Smith's hit show "First Take". The NFL season kicks off on September 7, and the timing indicated in his tweet aligns with that.

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Shannon Sharpe's replacements on "Undisputed" revealed

Meanwhile, over on Fox Sports, Skip Bayless is finally ready for business after Shannon Sharpe.

Last week, the New York Post revealed that former Super Bowl-winning cornerback Richard Sherman would be replacing Sharpe as the veteran journalist's debating "opponent". Sherman will remain on Amazon Prime's Thursday Night Football desk at the same time.

Two days after that, the Sports Business Journal's John Ourand revealed that former ESPN host Rachel Nichols would also be joining the panel. She is presently a basketball reporter for Showtime.

Ourand also reported that Fox Sports was also looking to add former wide receivers Keyshawn Johnson and Michael Irvin as rotating panelists.

Johnson was part of a recent mass layoff from ESPN, while Irvin is still serving a suspension from the NFL Network over alleged inappropriate conduct with hotel staff during Super Bowl week.

Rapper Lil Wayne, a close friend of Skip Bayless' who wrote the show's theme song, will also appear on the show every Friday. Bayless revealed the news on his eponymous podcast on August 3:

“If he’s hot, if he’s rolling, who knows, maybe we’ll keep him for a segment, if he has the time.”

"Undisputed" will have its "relaunch", as Bayless called it, on August 28, over a week before the NFL season begins.