Apr 21, 2025, 08:21 PM ET
A Nevada woman sued football Hall of Famer and ESPN host Shannon Sharpe for sexual assault and battery in Nevada civil court.
The woman, who says she met Sharpe at a Los Angeles-area health club in 2023, filed the suit Sunday. The lawsuit, filed under the pseudonym Jane Doe, says that the woman and Sharpe had a “rocky consensual relationship” lasting nearly two years, but that it turned “controlling” and “abusive.” The suit describes in detail a number of increasingly aggressive encounters involving the two, and says the relationship became “fearful and non-consensual” in the summer of 2024. It says the two last met Jan. 2.
Sharpe’s attorney, Lanny J. Davis, released to the media a series of suggestive text messages he said are from the woman and called the suit a “blatant and cynical attempt to shake down Mr. Sharpe for millions of dollars. It is filled with lies, distortions, and misrepresentations — and it will not succeed.” He said Sharpe is “prepared to fight these false claims vigorously in court. He looks forward to vindication through due process and a judgment based on the facts and the law.”
According to the complaint, Sharpe is accused of becoming increasingly verbally abusive, controlling and violent over time, once threatening to kill the woman and recording their sexual encounters without consent.
The suit, filed by the law firm headed by Tony Buzbee (who also represented a number of women who filed civil suits against NFL quarterback Deshaun Watson), asks for more than $50 million in damages and penalties.
Sharpe was a four-time All-Pro tight end who played on two Super Bowl championship teams with Denver and another with Baltimore over 14 seasons from 1990 to 2003. He was voted into the Hall of Fame in 2011.
Sharpe retired as the NFL’s all-time leader among tight ends in receptions (815), yards receiving (10,060) and touchdowns (62). Those records have since been broken.
Sharpe has been a staple on TV and social media since retiring. He left FS1’s sports debate show “Undisputed” in 2023 and joined ESPN soon afterward.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
