Don’t turn on ESPN looking to hear from Shannon Sharpe. The NFL Hall-of-Famer and sports analyst has announced he will be stepping away from the network while fighting a sexual assault attempt that he has referred to as a “shakedown.”
“My statement is found here and this is the truth,” Sharpe’s statement begins. “The relationship in question was 100% consensual. 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. 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.”
Shannon Sharpe has found himself in quite a mess. In case you missed it, he is being sued by a woman for $50 million under accusations of rape and more.
In a recent update, Lanny J. Davis, an attorney representing Sharpe, revealed that his client offered a $10 million settlement before the case went public during mediations “within the last month or so.”
According toTMZ, the offer was under consideration before Sharpe’s accuser “suddenly, without warning, walked away from our offer,” and later, “a big surprise to us when suddenly this case was filed without any advanced warning.”
Shannon Sharpe’s legal counsel has released a statement after being accused of sexual assault, seeking tens of millions of dollars in payment.
Released on social media, Sharpe shares that his accuser, Gabriella Zuniga, requested that Sharpe pay “$25k for each cheek.”
The lawsuit was also orchestrated by attorney Tony Buzbee, the same lawyer who recently led the dismissed case against JAY-Z.
The statement from Sharpe & Co. reads:
“This lawsuit, filed by Gabriella Zuniga and orchestrated by her attorney Tony Buzbee, is a blatant and cynical attempt to shake down Mr. Sharpe for millions of dollars. It is filled with lies, distortions, and misrepresentations – and it will not succeed.”
Shannon Sharpe, NFL Hall of Famer and media personality, is facing a $50 million lawsuit from a woman who claims he raped her multiple times throughout what she describes as a controlling and abusive relationship.
The lawsuit, filed on Sunday in Nevada and obtained by TMZ Sports, accuses the former Denver Broncos tight end of sexually assaulting the woman, identified only as Jane Doe, on separate occasions between late 2024 and early 2025.
According to the filing, Doe first met Sharpe in 2023 at a Los Angeles gym when she was 20 and he was in his mid-50s. She alleges Sharpe approached her with inappropriate comments, including a suggestion that he would “buy her fake t**s” if she beat him in a weight-loss challenge.
From there, the complaint states, Sharpe pursued her relentlessly, inundating her with calls and texts, and repeatedly demanding she visit his Beverly Glen residence. While their relationship began consensually, Doe describes it as increasingly toxic and abusive.
“He demanded complete control over her time and body,” attorney Tony Buzbee wrote in the complaint. “Expecting her to be at his house, on his schedule, at his command, whenever he called.”
Doe recalled a particularly chilling incident in which Sharpe allegedly yelled at her while a firearm was visibly nearby. She claims she tried to share her location with friends discreetly, but Sharpe noticed and responded by grabbing her neck and threatening, “If you ever do that again, I will f***ing kill you.”
Despite the ongoing abuse, Doe said the relationship continued as both she and Sharpe relocated to Nevada in mid-2024. She alleges the first rape occurred in October 2024, at her apartment, after she tried to distance herself from him following his widely publicized Instagram Live controversy.
Doe claims the second assault took place in January 2025, when Sharpe visited her under the pretense of giving her belated holiday gifts, only to allegedly attack her again.
She is seeking over $50 million in damages.
“It takes a great deal of courage to stand up against those with power, fame, and money,” Buzbee said in a statement. “I look forward to pressing this case in court.”
As of now, Sharpe has not publicly addressed the allegations.
