Stephen A. Smith took a swipe at Philadelphia Eagles All-Pro right tackle Lane Johnson for making the surprise announcement this week that he is retiring from pro football in part to focus on his mental health.
Appearing on ESPN’s First Take on Tuesday, a wound-up Smith blasted Johnson for retiring four games into the 2026 season and mocked Johnson for saying he wants to focus on his mental health.
Smith ripped Johnson for retiring now instead of before the season started. He also mocked the player’s reasons for retiring and chortled, “Life is a little bit too short; I need to focus.’ What did he say? His ‘mental health ‘? Am I makin’ it up?”
But many are blasting Smith for seeming to discount Johnson’s need to focus on his mental health. Social media erupted with condemnation for the bombastic ESPN analyst.
One X user ripped Smith and accused him of merely pandering for “clicks.”
“He got what we wanted. He yells at the camera for clicks and likes on social media. I still don’t know who watches this BS that is on during the workday and who the audience is,” the X user exclaimed.
A second user blasted Smith for a “despicable” reaction to Johnson’s retirement comments.
“It’s one thing if Lane retired because he just didn’t feel like playing anymore. Since he’s retiring due to his ongoing mental health struggles, it’s beyond despicable to see him go off on Lane like this. Give him a break,” the user said, adding, “Stephen A. Smith: putting the ‘ass’ in ‘classless.’”
Another insisted that “nobody” likes Smith.
“ESPN, what if I told you nobody likes this guy and if he disappeared off our screens tomorrow we would all forget about him within a week? He’s not the big talent you think he is. Sue him, get your money back, and hopefully he’ll die penniless and alone,” he said.
Still another furious X user exploded on Smith and said he has “no business” talking about football.
“This is exactly why SAS has no business speaking —commenting on Pro Football!!! One of the All-time great offensive linemen decides to retire 4 games in … says a lot about the real game and business of this violent sport. Yes, his mental health is his own. It matters. And there is no making light of it. Only a person like SA would make light …no former player that analyze the game will do what SA does here. Maaan. He really has no place talking about this Professional like this,” the user said.
An X user also ripped Smith for being flippant, and wrote, “Now if something happened to Lane because of said mental health, what’s he gonna say then?”
One also insisted that Johnson doesn’t owe anyone anything, and wrote, “2 Super Bowls, multiple All-Pros, guaranteed first-ballot Hall of Famer. He doesn’t owe the city, the state, the team JACK. SHIT.”
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