“I want this man removed from office” - Stephen A. Smith loses his mind over Dallas mayor suggesting expansion franchise to rival Cowboys
Stephen A. Smith is publicly one of the most consistent and impassioned haters of the Dallas Cowboys. Smith has trolled the team for their postseason blunders and mocked their fans regularly on ESPN. But he came to the Cowboys' defense Tuesday in a fiery First Take segment.
The Cowboys are in the news due to Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson's comments Monday. Johnson tweeted that he would like to see an expansion franchise come to Dallas.
Does the Dallas area need another NFL team? | @DallasMayor Eric Johnson says Dallas-Fort Worth will soon be the largest U.S. metropolitan area without two @NFL teams — so he suggests putting one in South Dallas wfaa.com/article/news/l…
Smith believes Johnson's comments were so egregious that he shouldn't be the mayor. Smith even called Johnson's comments blasphemous. Smith said:
“I want that man removed from office. And I want to make sure the world understands that that man, Eric Johnson, should be removed from office immediately. And if I'm Jerry Jones, I want him out. I want him gone. What blasphemy! And this is coming from me, of all people. Listen, how do you justify saying something so nonsensical? The Dallas Cowboys, and I can't believe I got to find myself in a position where I'm saying this."
🗣️ Bring another NFL team to Dallas
@stephenasmith and @mspears96: 😳 https://t.co/46OfXJVDfS
If it were another city, maybe there could be a discussion over having a second team. But the Cowboys are the most profitable franchise in sports, and their popularity trumps the other 31 teams. Smith used that as the basis for his argument, saying:
"This is the number one brand in all of sports. Considering the popularity of the NFL, combined with the fact that this is the number one brand. And you're talking about the stars on the helmets, the cheerleaders, the billion-dollar play pin, and Jerry Jones is the owner. For the local mayor in the city of Dallas to advocate for another football team? They should have a petition to get him removed from office immediately."
Smith concluded his point by laying it to Johnson. Smith also said Johnson created his political downfall with his tweets. Smith concluded by saying:
"He shouldn't get another vote. This is his only term. This is his only term in office. He won't recover from this. He won't recover from it. You can't say something like that, even I know that. But my God, I'm just sitting there like, how does the mayor of Dallas? I wouldn’t even advocate for a spring football team to be in Dallas, let alone another NFL team. That man should be ashamed.”
Other analysts have denounced idea of Cowboys having rival team
Smith isn't the only analyst who believes Dallas isn't large enough to support two NFL franchises. Shannon Sharpe was vehemently against the idea on Tuesday's episode of UNDISPUTED.
We've seen instances where the Los Angeles Rams and New York Giants are far more popular than their city counterparts, the Los Angeles Chargers, and New York Jets.
Given how entrenched in tradition the Cowboys are, it's challenging to imagine another Dallas football team being close to as popular.
Time will tell whether Johnson gets his wish, but it doesn't feel likely given the backlash and responses from many fans thus far.