Stephen A. Smith has been a man of many jobs throughout his tenure at ESPN. Starting this Monday, he’ll officially have one more.
ESPN is adding Smith to the cast of Monday Night Countdown for the Week 3 matchup between the Baltimore Ravens and Detroit Lions, Front Office Sports reported Thursday. It will be one of at least three appearances Stephen A. will make on the network’s Monday Night Football pregame show this fall.
The other two times are in Week 9 when the Arizona Cardinals take on the Dallas Cowboys and Week 14 when the Los Angeles Chargers host the Philadelphia Eagles.
“Those are just the three I know about. Knowing them at ESPN, they’ll want more,” Smith told FOS. “They’ll certainly want more of me on NBA Countdown. And so who knows? I mean, I’m doing First Take. But it’s ESPN. They know whatever they need me for—SportsCenter, NBA Countdown, NFL Countdown—it doesn’t matter. Whatever’s going to help make the network successful. Jimmy Pitaro, Burke Magnus, Dave Roberts, Mike McQuade. They know me. They know I’ll do whatever they ask.”
Stephen A. is everywhere
Smith is best known for his work on First Take, headlining ESPN’s most prominent debate show. That’s far from his only role at the Worldwide Leader though.
Smith frequently contributes to other ESPN programs. Away from the network, he hosts “The Stephen A. Smith Show” and is now getting into the political realm with “Straight Shooter Politics with Stephen A. Smith,” which airs from 6-8 p.m. Wednesdays on Channel 124 on SiriusXM.
On the premier episode of “Straight Shooter” this week, Smith hosted Governors Josh Shapiro (Pennsylvania) and Spencer Cox (Utah), along with Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
Is a presidential run in the cards?
Smith has been mentioned as a possible presidential candidate in the past, and while he has said he doesn’t want to run for office, the 57-year-old sports media personality has not explicitly ruled out doing so.
“I can’t imagine myself doing it, but I haven’t ruled it out, because I’m disgusted with what I’m seeing on the left,” Smith told HBO’s Bill Maher in August.
Smith has described himself as an independent who leans left, leading to speculation that perhaps he will explore a political run with the Democratic Party in 2028.
