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Stephen A. Smith Apologizes To Patriots Star Drake Maye

Originally posted on The Spun | By Chris Rosvoglou | Last updated Nov 22, 2025 4:27 PM ET

Earlier this week, ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith made headlines for something he said about New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye.

This random feud started with former MVP quarterback Cam Newton saying the Patriots are "fool's gold" despite their 9-2 record. Maye, who appears on WEEI-FM every week during the NFL season, was asked about Newton's comments. The talented quarterback from North Carolina admit that he's not familiar with "First Take" or any other major sports shows.

“I don’t even know what show he’s on,” Maye said. “I think they get paid to make remarks and make certain comments. 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.”

Apparently, Smith felt the need to respond to Maye's remarks.

“He’s a liar,” Smith said. “First Take is the number one morning show 13 years and counting. Don’t tell me you a athlete and you don’t know that. Don’t tell me you a athlete and you don’t know that Cam Newton is on this show. You lying.”

As you'd imagine, Patriots fans ripped Smith for his behavior. They thought he was out of line for calling Maye a "liar" on national television.

"[Drake Maye] is a liar…First Take is the number one morning show..don’t tell me you a athlete and you don’t know that. Don’t tell me you a athlete and you don’t know that Cam Newton is on this show. You lying." – Stephen A. Smith pic.twitter.com/kaxxptSMpY
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) November 20, 2025

Stephen A. Smith issues an apology.

While on Mad Dog Sports Radio this Friday, Smith walked back his comments about Maye. He also said he's willing to apologize to the second-year quarterback.

“I was being facetious because it wasn’t that big of a deal,” Smith said, via Awful Announcing. “In other words, Cam Newton is on national television. And your reaction was, ‘I don’t even know where he works.’ I just didn’t believe that. That’s all. I wasn’t calling him a liar about anything else. Just that he didn’t know where Cam works. But you are right, I don’t know Drake Maye, I’ve never spoken to him. Again, I was being facetious; I wasn’t being serious about that point. So, if people take it that way, sure, I can apologize for that, it’s no big deal. But I wasn’t being serious.”

We're not sure if Maye is even aware of Smith's latest comments. To be fair, he's getting ready to face the Cincinnati Bengals.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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