Bring back Skip full-time!
The recent comeback for sports media legend Skip Bayless to ESPN’s “First Take” resulted in a 24% viewership increase, according to the four-letter network.
The edition of the show, which broadcasted Friday, May 9, brought in an average of 647,000 viewers. In 2026, “First Take” has an average mark of 520,800 viewers. (RELATED: Matthew, Brady Tkachuk Reveal Epic Story Of Team USA Hockey Sneaking Beer Into Olympic Village)
This was the first TV appearance from Bayless with his former co-host Stephen A. Smith in almost a decade.
ESPN seeing a sharp increase in ratings for “First Take” is noteworthy. The program is still one of the highest-rated shows on the network, however, it’s been struggling to put up the same growth as other shows. Recently, ESPN stated that the ratings for “Get Up” are up 18%, while “The Pat McAfee Show” is at a 16% increase. Airing between the two programs, “First Take” has only seen a bump of 5%.
All eyes were on the @FirstTake reunion episode with @stephenasmith, @shaepeppler & @RealSkipBayless
✔️ Up 24% vs. ’26 First Take average
✔️ 22M views across ESPN social platforms pic.twitter.com/sE1mOUweOO— ESPN PR (@ESPNPR) May 13, 2026
At a 24% increase, I hope ESPN is learning their lesson here, and that’s to bring Skip Bayless back. Quite frankly, modern-day ESPN is pure garbage, so it would be nice to see a blast from the past making a full-time return.
There’s just something special about these two, or maybe it’s the younger self of me speaking, I don’t know, but still, special:
“You threw your Dallas Cowboys paraphernalia in the TRASH.” 😳@stephenasmith and @RealSkipBayless debate their Cowboys and Knicks fandom 😅 pic.twitter.com/ptFZTiknZ7
— First Take (@FirstTake) May 8, 2026
Go ahead and pull the trigger, ESPN, and bring in the money … why wouldn’t you?