There are some athletes whose stories end when they walk away from the game. Shannon Sharpe somehow managed to build two legendary careers. First, he went from an overlooked seventh-round draft pick to one of the greatest tight ends in NFL history. Then, when his playing days were over, he took the personality, intelligence and charisma that made him unforgettable on the football field and became one of the most recognizable personalities in sports television.
Sharpe’s road to the Hall of Fame was anything but easy. Although he was born in Chicago, he was raised in Glennville, Georgia, alongside his older brother Sterling in difficult circumstances. Football eventually took Shannon to Savannah State, far away from the powerhouse college programs that usually produced NFL stars. He became a three-time All-American there, but NFL teams still weren’t exactly fighting over him. Sharpe was caught between positions: teams questioned whether he was too big to be a wide receiver and too small to become an NFL tight end. Denver finally selected him with the 192nd overall pick in the seventh round of the 1990 NFL Draft.
Even making the roster wasn’t the beginning of instant superstardom. Sharpe caught just 29 passes across his first two NFL seasons. Denver eventually moved him to tight end, and everything changed. By his third season, Sharpe led the Broncos with 53 receptions for 640 yards, beginning his transformation into one of the players who helped redefine what the tight end position could be. Tight ends weren’t limited to being extra offensive linemen who occasionally caught a pass. Sharpe had the athleticism and receiving ability to become a legitimate weapon.
The numbers eventually became ridiculous. Across 14 NFL seasons with the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens, Sharpe finished with 815 receptions, 10,060 receiving yards and 62 touchdowns. He recorded three 1,000-yard seasons, made eight Pro Bowls, earned four First-Team All-Pro selections and was named to the NFL’s 1990s All-Decade Team. Most importantly, Sharpe became a three-time Super Bowl champion, winning twice with Denver and once with Baltimore.
By the time Sharpe retired, he wasn’t simply one of the best tight ends of his generation. He retired as the NFL’s all-time leader among tight ends in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, while becoming the first tight end in league history to surpass 10,000 receiving yards. In 2002, at 34 years old, he exploded for 214 receiving yards against the Kansas City Chiefs, setting the NFL single-game receiving record for a tight end at the time. During Baltimore’s run to Super Bowl XXXV, Sharpe also turned a short pass into a 96-yard touchdown in the AFC Championship Game, which remains one of the most memorable plays of his career.
A seventh-round pick from Savannah State had become a three-time Super Bowl champion and one of the most accomplished tight ends football had ever seen. In 2011, Sharpe received the ultimate recognition when he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
For most athletes, that’s where the story would end.
For Shannon Sharpe, it was basically halftime.
From Football Legend to Television Star
Sharpe retired after the 2003 season and almost immediately moved into broadcasting, joining CBS’s The NFL Today in 2004. It was the perfect transition. Anyone who watched Sharpe play already knew he could talk, but television gave people an opportunity to discover just how knowledgeable and entertaining he could be when he wasn’t wearing shoulder pads. He spent nearly a decade with CBS analyzing the game he had spent 14 years playing at the highest level.
But what eventually made Shannon special on television was that his knowledge wasn’t confined to football. Put an NFL topic in front of him and you’re listening to a Hall of Famer who understands the sport from experience, but Shannon could turn around and have an entertaining conversation about basketball, baseball, golf or seemingly whatever else was happening in sports that day. He combined legitimate sports knowledge with storytelling, humor, emotion and one of the biggest personalities in sports media.
That became especially apparent when he joined Skip Bayless on Undisputed in 2016. The show gave Shannon more room to be Shannon. The debates were entertaining, the arguments could become heated, and his personality became every bit as important as his analysis. A generation of fans who never watched Shannon Sharpe catch a pass suddenly knew him as one of the most entertaining voices in sports television.
Leaving Undisputed didn’t end Shannon’s television career. He eventually made the move to ESPN, becoming a prominent contributor to First Take. Once again, Shannon showed that his appeal extended far beyond simply analyzing tight ends or breaking down NFL games. Football will always be where his expertise runs deepest, but he can sit at the desk and discuss the biggest stories across the sports world. Whether the conversation is about an NFL quarterback, an NBA superstar or another major sporting event, Shannon brings knowledge, experience and personality to the discussion.
And that might be the most remarkable part of his story. Think about how difficult it is to reach the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Sharpe already climbed one mountain that almost every football player who has ever lived failed to climb. Yet after retiring, he managed to build an entirely different career successful enough that millions of younger sports fans may know Shannon Sharpe the television personality before they know Shannon Sharpe the football player.
That’s what makes Shannon Sharpe such a perfect subject for Stories of Legends.
He came from humble beginnings in Georgia, went to a small HBCU, lasted until the seventh round of the NFL Draft and entered the league without even having a clearly defined position. Fourteen seasons later, he walked away as a three-time Super Bowl champion, eight-time Pro Bowler, four-time First-Team All-Pro, member of the 1990s All-Decade Team and eventually a Pro Football Hall of Famer.
Then he started all over again.
Sharpe took his football knowledge and expanded it into genuine all-around sports commentary. He showed that he could talk football with the authority of a Hall of Famer one minute and debate basketball, baseball, golf or another sport the next, all while being a true delight to watch on television.
Some athletes spend the rest of their lives trying to recreate the attention they received while playing.
Shannon Sharpe found another arena and became a legend there too.
From seventh-round pick to Hall of Fame tight end. From Hall of Fame tight end to one of sports television’s most recognizable personalities.
That’s one hell of a story.
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