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FOX sports pundit Skip Bayless has issued a humiliating apology for a tweet he shared Monday about Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin’s on-field collapse.
In the wake of Monday night’s huge controversy, Bayless’ co-host and former NFL player Shannon Sharpe was conspicuously absent from the latest episode of ‘Undisputed,’ leaving him to apologize while sitting alone on air.
“Let me say up front that I apologize for what we’re going to do here today if it offends anybody because we’re going to try to do the show pretty much like we normally do,” said 71-year-old Bayless, who was joined Fox Sports in 2016 after being an ESPN pundit for 12 years.
‘But, I admit up front that I’m still reeling from what happened to Damar Hamlin last night. In fact, I’m still torn apart. In fact, I’m not sure I’ll be able to do this show today.
FOX sports pundit Skip Bayless apologized Tuesday for his “insensitive” tweet related to Buffalo Bills player Damar Hamlin’s cardiac arrest on Monday night.
Bayless faced a harsh backlash on Twitter after apparently questioning whether the NFL should have delayed the Bills’ penultimate home game against the Bengals on Monday night.
Hamlin, 24, remains in critical condition today after he tackled opposing Bengals receiver Tee Higgens. He collapsed afterwards and went into cardiac arrest before being rushed to hospital.
“But after barely sleeping with him, I decided to give it a try,” he added. Maybe fail. Maybe we will fail. But we are going to try. We struggled for much of the night not to put on a show today because we felt like in our minds, we almost can’t win with this because the last thing we want to do is seem numb to what this young man is going through in a life and death situation.
“The last thing we want to do is offend anyone by trying to do what we always do, which is talk about sports. As this show goes on, we’re going to try to talk a little bit about sports.
“But we’re going to keep talking about what happened to this young man last night and try to figure it out with the help of the audience.”
With many fans of the show speculating that Sharpe was deliberately absent from Tuesday’s episode in an apparent response to Bayless’s tweet about Hamlin on Monday, the TV sportscaster only commented that he “hopes to see him tomorrow.”
Fox Sports’ ‘Undisputed’ co-host Shannon Sharpe was conspicuously absent on Tuesday
On Monday night, Bayless sparked fury after he appeared to question whether the NFL should postpone the Bills’ pivotal Monday night game against the Cincinnati Bengals after Hamlin went into cardiac arrest at Highmark Stadium.
As of Tuesday, Hamlin, 24, remains in critical condition after he made a tackle on opposing Bengals receiver Tee Higgens and collapsed before being rushed to the hospital.
The NFL later called off the game after Hamlin was taken off the field in an ambulance, but Bayless questioned how they could stop the game during the final week of the regular season.
No doubt the NFL is considering postponing the rest of this game, but how? This late in the season, a game of this magnitude is crucial to the outcome of the regular season…which suddenly seems so irrelevant,” Bayless tweeted.
Bayless’s tweet on Monday shocked the sports world, led by ESPN analyst Robert Griffin III: ‘Damar Hamlin’s LIFE is on the line. He sticks his head out of your ass’
His tweet sparked fury among NFL fans, with ESPN analyst Robert Griffin III tweeting: ‘Damar Hamlin’s LIFE is on the line. He sticks his head out of your ass.
NBA star Isaiah Thomas tweeted: ‘I hope you get fired bro! For you to even THINK about the game is so sad.’
One fan tweeted: ‘A platform as big as yours and you choose to care about a game over someone’s life? You are one of the worst here. You should be ashamed.’
The backlash forced Bayless to apologize for questioning whether the match should be postponed.
Bayless tweeted Tuesday: ‘Nothing is more important than that young man’s health. That was the point of my last tweet. I’m sorry if he misunderstood, but his health is the only thing that matters. Once again, everything else is irrelevant. I prayed for him and will continue to do so.’
During the match, the ESPN Monday Night Football broadcast cut to a commercial four times while Hamlin received treatment on the field.
After the ambulance left the field, reports initially suggested play would restart after a five-minute warm-up, sparking a wave of anger on social media.
Vincent said the league took no action to restart play and did not ask players to begin a five-minute warm-up period as broadcasters ESPN had announced.
“It never crossed our minds to talk about warming up to resume play,” Vincent said. ‘That’s ridiculous. That’s insensitive. That’s not a place we should be.
Hamlin remains in critical condition after collapsing on the field. In a chilling scene, the player was administered CPR on the field while he was surrounded by his tearful teammates.
‘Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest after being hit in our game against the Bengals. His heart rate was restored on the field and he was transported to the UC Medical Center for further testing and treatment,” the Bills said in a statement.
“He is currently sedated and in critical condition.”
Bayless apologized for questioning whether the Bills-Bengals game should be called off
Bills players were surprised to see Hamlin receiving life-saving treatment on the field.
Hamlin was injured while tackling Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins in a seemingly routine play that did not appear unusually violent.
The NFL announced Hamlin’s condition shortly after he was taken to a hospital, but neither the league nor the hospital released any further details about the 24-year-old’s medical condition. The team’s statement was issued before his flight returned to Buffalo early Tuesday morning. There was no immediate update on the future state of the game.
On the play, the 6-foot, 200-pound Hamlin was injured, Higgins leading with his right shoulder, which struck the defense in the chest. Hamlin then wrapped his arms around Higgins’ shoulders and helmet to drag him down.
Hamlin scrambled to his feet, appeared to adjust his mask with his right hand, then fell back about three seconds later and lay still.
Bills players are seen praying for their 24-year-old teammate after he went into cardiac arrest
Bengals fans held a vigil for Hamlin at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, following the football player’s sudden collapse at Highmark Stadium Monday night.
Hamlin was treated on the field by the team, independent medical personnel and local paramedics, and was taken by ambulance to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. His teammate Stefon Diggs later joined Hamlin in the hospital.
About 100 Bills fans and a few Bengals fans gathered on a corner a block from the ER entrance, some holding candles.
Jeff Miller, the NFL’s executive vice president, told reporters on a conference call early Tuesday that the league had made no plans at this time to play the game, adding that Hamlin’s health was the main focus.
An ambulance was on the field four minutes after Hamlin collapsed as many players hugged each other, including Buffalo quarterbacks Josh Allen and Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow.
“Please pray for our brother,” Allen tweeted.