ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith flubs on Jalen Reagor; Ron Jaworski gets another Eagles gig
The Eagles traded Jalen Reagor to the Vikings last month. Someone might want to tell Stephen A.
“Forgive him, America, for what he does not know,” Stephen A. Smith said before making his latest mistake on First Take.
Smith, a former Inquirer reporter and columnist, speaks for an almost incalculable number of hours each week on ESPN and its various properties. So it’s not surprising he flubs a fact or two now and then.
On Wednesday, during a discussion about the Eagles with SiriusXM host Chris “Mad Dog” Russo, Smith took the position that the Birds have a better shot to win the NFC East than the Dallas Cowboys (which has become a popular stance among national media figures leading up to the season).
Unfortunately, Smith must have missed the trade a couple weeks ago that sent wide receiver Jalen Reagor to the Minnesota Vikings, to the celebration of many Eagles fans.
“Yes, Jalen Hurts has a lot to prove,” Smith said. “Then you acquire A.J. Brown. You put him with DeVonta Smith. You got that going on. Reagor’s got something to prove this year, but the three of them is a great, great thing.”
Sure, Reagor does have something to prove after two disappointing seasons in Philadelphia. He’ll just be doing it in Minneapolis.
This is only the latest in a string of mistakes Smith has made as his workload has increased at ESPN. Last month, he appeared to forget that Hank Steinbrenner, the former co-owner of the New York Yankees and son of George Steinbrenner, died in 2020. He is also among those at ESPN duped by Ballsack Sports into thinking James Harden got into a fight with his former Brooklyn Nets teammate Kyrie Irving.
And he hasn’t stopped adding work — his newest gig is a podcast for Audacy’s Cadence13 called Know Mercy that will debut Sept. 26 and drop on Mondays, Wednesday, and Fridays. According to the release, Smith will offer “unfiltered insights and perspectives on the day’s headlines, including politics, entertainment, social issues, criminal justice, and business.” He’s also releasing a new book in January titled, Straight Shooter: A Memoir of Second Chances and First Takes.
Smith is also interested in running for president.
“I said, ‘if the American people wanted me to run for the presidency of the United States of America, I would strongly consider it’ And damnit I mean it!” Smith said last month. “I know this much — I wouldn’t lose a debate.”
» READ MORE: 2022 NFL season predictions are nearly unanimous: Eagles win the NFC East. Will they make the Super Bowl?
Jaws gets another Eagles gig
It’s lining up to be a busy Eagles season for former Birds quarterback Ron Jaworski.
The former ESPN talker and Monday Night Football announcer, known to fans as “Jaws,” is already expected to join NBC Sports Philadelphia’s Eagles pre- and postgame coverage. On Wednesday he added a new gig — weekly appearances on 94.1 WIP during the NFL season
Jaworski will join the station’s midday show — hosted by Joe DeCamara and former Eagles fullback Jon Ritchie — at 12:45 p.m. on Wednesdays. The move reunites DeCamara and Jaworski, who once cohosted a Wednesday evening show for 97.5 The Fanatic before DeCamara joined WIP in 2016.
“One of my main goals here was to get you here with us,” DeCamara told Jaworski on Wednesday’s show. “You told us on the air, I guess it was about six months ago … ‘I’m a free agent.’ And I said, ‘Now’s the time!’”
“I was a free agent in the market. My career at ESPN was over, they couldn’t block me anymore. So it’s great to be back,” Jaworski said.
Jaworski will also join Jon Marks and former Eagles linebacker Ike Reese on WIP’s afternoon show every Friday at 4 p.m., and he’ll undoubtedly appear a handful of times with soon-to-be-retired Angelo Cataldi on the station’s morning show.
» READ MORE: NBC Sports Philadelphia expected to add Ron Jaworski to Eagles coverage
Quick hits
Future Hall of Famer Larry Fitzgerald Jr. is joining ESPN’s Monday Night Football as an analyst, according to the New York Post’s Andrew Marchand. Fitzgerald will replace Hall of Famer Randy Moss, who left to focus on Sunday NFL Countdown. The Eagles have two games on Monday Night Football this season — the home opener against the Minnesota Vikings on Sept. 19 on ABC, and a Nov. 14 matchup against the Washington Commanders on ESPN.
The Flyers are scheduled begin the 2022-23 season at home against the New Jersey Devils on Oct. 13, where new head coach John Tortorella will make his Philadelphia debut. Unfortunately, the game won’t be airing on NBC Sports Philadelphia or anywhere else on television — it will stream exclusively on both ESPN+ and Hulu.
Fox Sports host Doug Gottlieb admitted Wednesday that his claim about star first baseman Freddie Freeman’s contract talks with the Atlanta Braves was false. He had reported on Twitter that Casey Close, Freeman’s former agent, never told the star first baseman about a final contract offer that could have kept him with the Atlanta Braves. Close and Excel Sports Management sued Gottlieb in July in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, and have moved to dismiss the libel case against Gottlieb following the retraction.
Former 97.5 The Fanatic host Mike Missanelli will host a new weekly podcast as part of his role as a brand ambassador for BetRivers, a brand of the gambling firm Rush Street Interactive. Missanelli told the Inquirer the new podcast will sound a lot like his old show, and will be recorded live to include listeners. “It will be me, unleashed, with no holds barred,” Missanelli said. “Hopefully people will come along for the ride.”