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It seems ESPN is trying to flag Fox Sports for a false start penalty after Skip Bayless broke the news that Keyshawn Johnson would be joining the cast of the rebooted FS1 series Undisputed. Apparently, ESPN isn't ready to let Johnson out of his contract that easily.
Even though the worldwide leader in sports fired Johnson in Year 2 of a five-year, approximately $18 million contract as part of a high-profile cost-cutting maneuver earlier this summer, that doesn't mean Johnson can immediately jump to a competitor. In order for Johnson to take another job in the field of sports media before his contract with ESPN officially expires, the network would have to negotiate an agreement with him, which hasn't taken place yet.
The two networks have been swapping media personalities like trading cards lately (though some are more highly PSA-graded than others). First Shannon Sharpe, the former co-host of Undisputed, decided to leave the program — then announced he'd be joining ESPN to work on First Take with Stephen A. Smith on Monday and Tuesday episodes during football season.
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Then, Undisputed decided to retool as an ensemble sports talk show featuring Skip Bayless, in addition to former ESPN host Rachel Nichols, First Take contributor Michael Irvin, and U Mad Bro? meme generator Richard Sherman. Oh, and let's not forget Lil Wayne.
Now Keyshawn Johnson, one of about twenty big-name ESPN regulars surprisingly let go earlier this summer, is being eyed for a big network trade, and it very well may still happen. However, the New York Post is reporting that if Johnson were to join Skip Bayless and Undisputed, it would most likely be as a co-host as opposed to a contributor role, but that can only be worked out once ESPN signs off on the move.
