Earlier this week, Shannon Sharpe was hit with a $50 million lawsuit by an anonymous woman accusing him of rape and assault. He's since denied the accusations, describing the suit as an alleged "shakedown."
"Mr. Sharpe categorically denies all allegations of coercion or misconduct -- especially the gross lie of 'rape' -- and will not submit to what he sees as an egregious attempt at blackmail," his attorney Lanny J. Davis also said of the suit. "He stands firmly by the truth and is prepared to fight these false claims vigorously in court. He looks forward to vindication through due process and a judgment based on facts and the law."
Now, sources close to Sharpe have spoken with TMZ Sports, sharing new alleged details of he and his accuser's relationship. The sources claim that the two of them never reached "boyfriend-girlfriend" status, and that their dynamic was "purely" sexual. Allegedly, they had BDSM sex "about 100 times" from late 2022 to January 2025 in Los Angeles and Nevada.
Shannon Sharpe Texts
The sources also allege that while these encounters were kinky, they were all consensual, and that the woman initiated many of the physical acts involved. The lawyer representing Sharpe's accuser, Tony Buzbee, was quick to shut these claims down.
"Someone should tell Mr. Sharpe that when you are digging yourself a hole, it would be smart to stop digging," he told TMZ. "The filed complaint and audio speaks for itself."
Buzbee went on to reference a text message allegedly sent to Sharpe by his accuser. It was one of several released shortly after her suit was filed. In it, she appeared to tell him, "I don’t care what our history is, no means no shannon."
"As you can clearly see from the texts released by Mr. Sharpe’s team," Buzbee said, "'No means no' no matter what has occurred before."
