While the court system of the United States operates under the notion of ‘innocent until proven guilty,’ the court of public opinion sees no such constraints. In the quite literal case of Shannon Sharpe, the latter may prove to cost him millions.
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In light of recent reports claiming that Sharpe’s $100 million deal has bottomed out, members of Marcellus Wiley’s Dat Dude TV are suggesting that the NFL Hall of Famer’s financial troubles are far from over.
While it was mentioned that the former Denver Bronco will likely continue to enjoy his loyal fanbase, there may not be much else for him, business-wise, outside of that.
“His money is going to take a hit someway or another. It just hasn’t happened yet. There’s a thing called lagging indicators in the economy. Certain things happen at a certain time but you don’t see the effects of it until later,” Marcellus Wiley’s co-analyst said.
The former San Diego Charger followed that comment by citing a very “real” example of how the scandal has already impacted Sharpe’s bottom line. According to Wiley, the legendary tight end recently lost a six-figure payday as a direct result of his $50-million civil lawsuit.
Thanks to a phone call, the defensive end turned podcaster was able to confirm that at least one deal has officially fallen through for Sharpe.
“Somebody hit me up and was saying they were looking for something, and it was for Shannon. It was like a $150,000 brand ambassador thing. It was for Shannon, and they were like ‘It’s not going to for Shannon now, Wiley do you know anybody?’ And, that’s just me. You know how many people they aren’t even hitting up?,” he explained.
Taking a moment to reflect on the implied losses of the various deals that Sharpe already has and will continue to lose, Wiley couldn’t help but to begin thinking about other celebrities who have lost millions in the face of both public and legal scandals.
“You know how much banko he done lost? Jay-Z said he lost $20 million through that month or two that he went through it.”
Others in the discussion found themselves suggesting that Sharpe’s initial audience will hold him up just fine. Believing that “as long as he’s doing numbers on his platform,” there’s always going to be someone who is willing to approach him with potential endorsements and sponsorships.
Either way, it seems as if Sharpe will be forced to lose a bit of money before he’s able to make some again. In a previous statement, Sharpe claimed that he would return to ESPN by the beginning of the NFL preseason.
Seeing as the first game of the preseason is set to kickoff on July 31st, that gives Sharpe approximately two months to clear his name and get the stink off of his reputation. In a modern day where the internet ensures that everything lingers, his announcement may prove to be a tad too ambitious.
