Popular sports commentator Stephen A. Smith can’t believe what New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye just said about Cam Newton and their ESPN show, “First Take.”
For those who missed it, Newton recently shared some critical comments about the Patriots, who are undoubtedly one of the hottest teams in the NFL right now. New England currently leads the AFC and while NFL with a 9-2 record, having won eight straight games.
Newton, however, claimed that the Patriots’ success is “fool’s gold,” noting that they benefitted from an easy schedule.
“It has fool’s gold written all over them, cubic zirconia middle of the mall,” Newton said of the Patriots during a recent appearance on ESPN’s “First Take.”
“And yes, is Drake Maye playing good football? Absolutely. I would like to attest his great play to one specific person that I know too well, Josh McDaniels. Now Josh McDaniels may not be a great head coach, but he is a brilliant offensive mind.”
Maye, however, didn’t let Newton’s remarks bother him, even claiming that he doesn’t “even know what show he’s on.”
“I think they get paid to make remarks and make certain comments,” Maye said on WEEI. “So, I just worry about what people in our organization think, and worry about we think and what my teammates think. People are going to have different opinions. I’m just going out there on Sunday and worrying about ourselves.”
Smith, who is a mainstay on “First Take,” took offense at Maye’s claim that he doesn’t know about their show. For the sports personality, it’s impossible for the Patriots signal-caller not to know about their show considering how popular it is.
“He’s also a liar,” Smith exclaimed. “First Take is the No. 1 morning show 13 years and counting … don’t tell me you a athlete and you don’t know that. Don’t tell me you athlete and you don’t know that Cam Newton is on this show. You lying.”
To be fair to Maye, athletes often turn their social media accounts off or don’t really engage much online to shut out the noise. That being said, it wouldn’t really be surprising if he’s unaware of the show that Newton is on.
Several fans also criticized Smith for his response to Maye, with many noting that they also didn’t know that Newton was on the show.
“Drake Maye was not lying. I had absolutely 0 idea what show Cam Newton was on. The only time I see it might be in a social media clip here or there & no care or recall of show context. Stephen A not fully appreciating how irrelevant linear TV, especially for young players,” a commenter wrote.
Another one said, “I’ve never watched this show before.”
