Shannon Sharpe Says Taylor Swift Is The “Closest” Person Moving The Needle “Like Michael Jackson”
Shannon Sharpe feels Taylor Swift moves the needle, similar to Michael Jackson. During a recent episode of Nightcap, Sharpe and Chad Johnson discussed Taylor’s impact on the NFL. Shannon then stated that Swift’s impact on the league is only comparable to MJ’s cultural reach.
“The attention that she brings and the people, the eyes, that she brings that don’t even watch the game of football… it’s crazy what she’s been able to do for the NFL,” Chad said. “Tell me the other person that’s gonna do that,” Sharpe said, referencing the Front Office report that the pop star has brought in $331 million in value to the football league. Ocho Cinco quickly shot back, “Beyoncé.”
“Not like this!” Sharpe responded. “These eight-to-15-year-old eyeballs — Ocho, I love Beyoncé. [But] Beyoncé ain’t moving the needle like this chick, Ocho… She’s the closest thing to moving the needle like Michael Jackson that we’ve seen. This is it.”
Johnson was visibly taken aback by his comment and advised him to “reel it back in a little bit.” The former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver expressed that Beyoncé can move the needle just like Swift — probably a little more.
However, Shannon was steadfast in his assertion and stated that Taylor is the standard. He also insisted that the NFL would much rather have the Pennsylvania native performer over “Beyoncé, JAY-Z, and Rihanna combined… Just the facts.” The talking head then claimed that the league approached the pop star to perform at the big game. Sharpe alleges that she ultimately turned it down.
Taylor and Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce’s relationship inspired a new demographic of fans to tune in to the games. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell spoke to CBS Mornings in November 2023 about Kelce and Swift’s relationship and its impact on the league.
“They’re happy, they seem to be enjoying their relationship. That’s great, in and of itself,” Goodell expressed. “But it has connected more fans of Taylor’s and more fans of the NFL in some ways. Sort of, to see that they have a connection, now [fans] have a connection to our game and to Taylor… I think it’s great for the league to have that kind of attention.”
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