{"id":51988,"date":"2025-05-29T04:23:17","date_gmt":"2025-05-29T04:23:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=51988"},"modified":"2025-05-29T04:23:17","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T04:23:17","slug":"stephen-a-smiths-evil-cowboys-take-hits-espn-sour-note","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usatoday.azontree.com\/?p=51988","title":{"rendered":"Stephen A. Smith’s ‘Evil’ Cowboys Take Hits ESPN Sour Note.."},"content":{"rendered":"
Stephen A. Smith is fully capable of analyzing the Knicks. Chris Canty is fully capable of analyzing the Cowboys. We suppose we’ll never know the answer to this, but … what would ESPN as a sports network look and sound like if they tried that?<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n

FRISCO – It’s not football. It’s theater.<\/p>\n

And\u00a0Stephen A. Smith\u00a0being handed a new five-year, $100 million contract courtesy of ESPN proves that.<\/p>\n

Part of the act? Smith has developed a reputation as a “Cowboys\u00a0hater,” even though it’s bogus.<\/p>\n

He doesn’t know enough about the\u00a0Dallas Cowboys\u00a0to “hate” them. What he knows if that an ESPN talks about “America’s Team,” that usage generates eyeballs and headlines.<\/p>\n

And voila, a guy gets paid $100 million!<\/p>\n

Smith, no dummy, is rarely on the mark (he pretty much doesn’t know whether a football is blown up or stuffed) when it comes to analysis.<\/p>\n

But there are times when he’s funny.<\/p>\n

This is not one of those times.<\/p>\n

Former Cowboys defensive lineman Chris Canty is now an ESPN colleague of Smith’s, as as it happens, Stephen A. is a\u00a0New York Knicks fan.<\/p>\n

The Knicks are not faring well in the\u00a0NBA\u00a0Eastern Conference Finals against the\u00a0Indiana Pacers\u00a0and are now down 3-1 in the series.<\/p>\n

Canty suggested they’re losing because of Smith’s bad karma.<\/p>\n

Smith tried to ping-pong back the idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s that damn Chris Canty, I\u2019m telling you right now, he does a phenomenal job for us on ESPN Radio every morning,\u201d Smith began. \u201cBut ever since he got that damn radio show, he\u2019s gotten more evil. That\u2019s what he\u2019s done. That\u2019s what he turned into.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n