Football Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe made plenty of headlines by interviewing Katt Williams, and it apparently paid off.
He told Nightcap co-host Chad Johnson (h/t Abel Shifferaw of Complex) that he made more money from the interview than he did from any single year in the NFL.
"Everybody was talking about how much money I made doing the Katt Williams interview," Sharpe said. "I just got the check. So whatever you think I made, 3x it. So if you think I made $500,000, 3x it. If you think I made a million, 3x it. If you think I made $2 million, 3x it.
"I made more money on Katt Williams alone than I made in any year that I played the NFL."
As of Friday, the nearly three-hour interview with Williams—who criticized fellow comics and talked politics, among other topics—has more than 61 million views on YouTube.
According to Spotrac, Sharpe tallied $22.3 million in career earnings during 15 seasons for the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens. His highest base salary for a single season was 1999 when he made $2.25 million with the Broncos, although his signing bonus in 2000 led to a bigger payday that year:
Front Office Sports @FOSShannon Sharpe says he made more from his viral Katt Williams interview than he made any one year playing in the NFL.<br><br>The most Sharpe earned in a season was $5M in 2000.<br><br>(via <a href="">@NightcapShow_</a>) <a href="">
Sharpe was one of the best tight ends in NFL history with a Hall of Fame resume that includes three Super Bowl titles, four First-Team All-Pro selections and eight Pro Bowl nods.
He would surely be paid much more in today's game, as Spotrac lists 11 tight ends with a base salary of at least $5 million for the 2024 season alone.
But Sharpe is at least making plenty of money elsewhere.
