Bill Simmons Reportedly Will No Longer Appear on Any ESPN Platform

Bill Simmons' farewell with ESPN will not be a grandiose affair. In fact, the popular writer/podcast host/analyst will end his tenure with the network in a deafening silence.   

According to Richard Deitsch of Sports Illustrated, Simmons and ESPN already reached terms on a deal that will keep him off any media platform for the network:

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SI has learned that ESPN and Simmons have worked out an agreement that officially ends his tenure as a front-facing employee for ESPN. Simmons sent an email to Grantland staffers this week informing them that he would no longer be working for the site he founded in 2011. Simmons will also no longer do podcasts or appear on television for ESPN.

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Tom Ley of Deadspin shared an excerpt of one of the e-mails from Simmons (Warning: Content contains NSFW language):

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Wanted to tell you that it looks like I am done being involved with Grantland. Can’t say much here for obvious reasons, at least for now—I know you understand. In the short-term—don’t let this b------t affect you. Just keep doing what you’re doing. It’s a job. We tried to make it feel like it was more than a job these last four years, but right now, it’s still a job and Grantland is still being consumed and judged by the general public (with unusually high standards, too). So keep the quality of your work as high as it’s always been. Work situations are rarely going to be perfect and you can’t allow it to affect what you’re doing. The best way to “respond” right now is to keep putting out a great site. If you didn’t know, April was our best month—we passed 10 million uniques without chasing traffic and without any leading-the-site promotion whatsoever from ESPN.com (just one Mets piece for like 90 minutes, that’s it). We built an audience because of quality and quality only. You guys should feel good about that.

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As of this writing, Simmons is still featured on ESPN.com's front page alongside Grantland's content.

ESPN.com

Deitsch also noted Friday that both sides declined a request to comment on the matter. ESPN president John Skipper announced May 8 that the media outfit would not renew Simmons' contract, saying the two sides were "in negotiations and it was clear it was time to move on."

At ESPN's television upfronts presentation Tuesday, Skipper vaguely addressed how the two sides were going to work together through the end of Simmons' deal, which ends in September, per Deitsch:

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We’re going to work through where we are, and I don’t have any comment on what we might do. It’s going to be better for us to talk to each other and not go to the press. Anything we are talking about is personal and confidential and I expect you’ll hear from Bill and I in the not so distant future about what we are up to. Right now all is cordial.

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Simmons has been one of ESPN's most important personalities since joining the sports empire in 2001. His work as a podcast host and a writer turned him into a national phenomenon, which in turn led to the creation of Grantland and his gig as an NBA analyst for the network. 

Whatever the future holds for him, he's going to be one of the most sought-after free agents in sports media because his voice is so powerful and attracts a huge fanbase. All we know for sure is he won't be seen any longer on the ESPN family of networks.