Pat McAfee accused of firing off at ESPN rival Stephen A. Smith after Shannon Sharpe hit out at a colleague

Pat McAfee is accused of making a minor criticism of ESPN colleague Stephen A. Smith for using anonymous sources.

In a recent segment of NFL GameDay, McAfee spoke out against the use of anonymous sources in breaking news in the sports world.

While it is common practice in journalism to protect sources, McAfee emphasized that this should only be a practice in the “political world and the real world.”

“You need anonymous sources for people’s protection and safety,” McAfee said. ‘No more anonymous sources in sports.’

‘I want to know who said what. Because when something ‘breaks’, I want to know: was that a cop trying to make something up? Was that a GM who was maybe a little upset?”

While reviewing the segment, former NFL player Marcellus Wiley believed the comments were a shot at Smith.

McAfee spoke about how to stop the use of anonymous sources in sports reporting

“Another shot across the bow,” Wiley claimed on his podcast. “As Pat McAfee says, ‘Hey, this is my throne.’ And Stephen A. Smith says, “I’m number one.” Let’s see how that goes.’

“I’m glad Pat McAfee took a light shot at Stephen A. Smith. But at the same time, it’s real,” Wiley added.

“Since he called Stephen A. without saying his name, let’s talk about it. let’s talk about some of the bigger anonymous sources… I think it’s BS too. I think you should say your name.”

Wiley cited how Smith infamously shared information from an anonymous source earlier this year that Boston Celtics star and NBA Finals MVP Jaylen Brown was “unliked.”

In response, Brown urged Smith to name his source, to which the First Take host insisted this would be against journalistic ethics.

Wiley’s accusation comes as ESPN personalities appear to be trying each other out in recent weeks.

On December 23, Smith co-host Shannon Sharpe issued a chilling warning to Kirk Herbstreit after the college football analyst lashed out at First Take while calling the Tennessee-Ohio State game.

“I’ll be a good teammate, I’ll let it slide,” Sharpe said calmly after Smith went on a tirade about the comment. ‘To have [Smith] If I hadn’t taken the route you took, I would have lit them.”

“Congratulations Ohio State, you won the game,” he continued. ‘But hey, if we’re on the same team, if we’re going to work for the same network, then don’t do that.

“Kirk, Chris Fowler, I promise you, if you ever mention another platform I’m on… and talk about ‘wonder what they’re going to say,’ in negativity… I promise you ESPN doesn’t have enough bosses to keep me from you because of what I’m about to say.”

“So I’m letting you slide today,” he repeated. ‘I’m going to hand it over to DOEN before I get into trouble. But don’t play with me.’