‘This is live television, hurry up’ yells Stephen A. Smith as Molly Qerim accuses Chris Russo of ‘evading the question’

STEPHEN A. Smith has lost his cool with ESPN colleague Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo in a wild on-air debate.

ESPN show First Take descended into chaos as the analysts looked forward to this week’s NFL kick-off.

First Take/ESPN

First Take/ESPN

First Take/ESPN

Smith, Russo, and fellow ESPN star Jeff Saturday were asked by host Molly Qerim to predict the outcome of this year’s AFC.

Russo claimed that the Chiefs , who have won the AFC for the last two seasons, were not going to repeat the feat in 2024.

“If you don’t have the Chiefs, who do you have?” Qerim asked.

“What are you giving me a hard time for?” responded a defensive Russo , prompting a pile-in from Smith and Saturday.

“Answer the question!” shouted an irate Smith , who was joining the show remotely from Dallas.

Russo continued to evade answering the question, going off on a segway regarding Houston Texans wide receiver Stefon Diggs .

“Excuse me,” interrupted Qerim, “Are you digressing?”

“Evading the question. Christopher Russo, jeez.”

Mad Dog responded by suggesting Molly was “cranky”, prompting Stephen A. to intervene.

“We’re waiting for the answer to the question she asked three minutes ago!” screamed Smith down the line.

“This is live television, hurry up!”

Qerim drew laughs from the panel after suggesting Mad Dog was “buying time like Miss Universe” to evade the question.

Russo eventually revealed his prediction, selecting the New York Jets and Buffalo Bills to contest the AFC Championship Game.

But when asked by Qerim who would win the contest, he begged “for another three minutes.”

First Take viewing figures

First Take went from strength to strength under the guidance of Stephen A. Smith and Molly Qerim last year.

The weekday ESPN debate show averaged 496,000 viewers in 2023 – making it the most-watched year in program history.

Its December average of 611,000 was a 24% year-on-year increase compared to 2022.

The show also reported more than 250 million views on YouTube.

First Take was helped by the addition of Shannon Sharpe alongside Smith and Qerim after he left Fox Sports’ Undisputed.

The segment was finally brought to a close as Smith buried his face in his hands, declaring Russo had been “eating too many gummies.”

“First Take crazy today bro,” wrote one viewer on X.

“Mad Dog is the best thing to ever happen to First Take,” added another.

Russo, famous for his on-air SiriusXM rants, penned an ESPN contract extension in February.

“I love the First Take gig. I’ve had a renaissance. It’s because of Stephen A.,” he told Front Office Sports.

First Take airs every weekday on ESPN from 10 am ET, with Russo appearing each Wednesday morning.