Jacksonville Jaguars rookie Travis Hunter’s decision to get baptized on the morning of his team’s game against the Seattle Seahawks has sparked one of the strangest debates of the NFL season, which is led, unsurprisingly, by Skip Bayless.
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Earlier this week, the veteran sports analyst slammed Hunter for his timing, claiming the baptism was a sign he was “mentally checking out” of football. “There is no way Travis Hunter should’ve chosen to be baptized on the morning of a game… He’s losing interest,” Bayless declared in a viral post.
That take has since drawn sharp criticism online, with fans and former players accusing Bayless of overstepping by turning a deeply personal moment into a football talking point. Among those who responded the loudest to Bayless was Chad Johnson, who didn’t hold back on his co-host’s “old colleague” in the latest edition of Nightcap.
There is no way Travis Hunter should’ve chosen to be baptized on the morning of a game. He is losing interest. He is mentally checking out on the Jags. pic.twitter.com/hzqydPXSYG
— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) October 15, 2025
“You’re able to play this game, you understand? God always comes first. Not football,” Johnson said. “My grandma told me Sunday is always the Lord’s day. Getting baptized before a game ain’t a bad thing… The fact that Travis got baptized — hell, I need to go get baptized again too, because the last one’s wearing off,” he added.
While the Bengals legend echoed the majoritarian take on the internet, what came next caught viewers off guard as Shannon Sharpe, Bayless’ former Undisputed co-host and longtime on-air rival, surprisingly stepped in to defend him.
The NFL Hall of Famer offered a measured take on the situation, clarifying what he believed Skip Bayless meant.
“I don’t think Skip meant it like, ‘Why did you do it?’” Sharpe explained. “I think what he wanted to say was, ‘Why did you pick today… the day of the game to get baptized?’ Though it didn’t come out quite the way he meant it to,” he added.
The Broncos legend then went on to unpack the intent behind the comment, acknowledging that while the delivery was flawed, it wasn’t inherently malicious.
“We know why people get baptized — you go down as the old person and come up a new one. It’s about wanting to be a better man, a better father, a better son. But when you start tinkering with people’s religion and asking why they did something like that, people are going to look at you funny,” Sharpe argued, playing the devil’s advocate.
It’s impressive that even with Sharpe’s history with Bayless — whose repeated on-air jabs at him ultimately led to their messy breakup on Undisputed — he maintained composure and fairness. Sharpe even added that while he wouldn’t have chosen game day for such a decision, Travis Hunter’s timing had nothing to do with Jaguars’ 12-20 loss to the Seahawks.
“Would I have done it? No. But to each his own… They didn’t lose because Travis Hunter got baptized. That’s not the reason why they lost the game,” Sharpe noted.
This was a rare moment of empathy from Shannon Sharpe toward his former colleague after publicly admitting to the fact that Bayless had “no respect for him” during their time together.
Regardless, in an era where hot takes often dominate sports media, Sharpe’s response proves that sometimes, context and compassion can carry more weight than outrage. And who’d know more about being on the receiving end of a social media backlash than Sharpe himself, who has had a turbulent period in his personal and professional life of late.
