After the pair was named as part of a massive sexual harassment lawsuit, ESPN has officially fired Donovan McNabb and Eric Davis, according to Sports Business Daily. They had previously been suspended when former NFL Network wardrobe stylist Jami Cantor identified them along with fellow ex-players Marshall Faulk, Ike Taylor, Heath Evans, and Warren Sapp in a suit against NFL Enterprises.
Per Sports Business Daily, "McNabb was accused of sending inappropriate text messages, while Davis was accused of rubbing his body against the woman and engaging in lewd talk." Cantor initially filed the lawsuit in October, per Bloomberg, though the suit was not immediately public.
Deadspin published the lawsuit in full, which cites the time when McNabb and Davis worked as on-air talent for the NFL Network. It includes examples of the alleged graphic and inappropriate comments from the pair. The suit claims Davis said to Cantor, "You look like you would be an animal in the sheets," and repeatedly used similar language, while it is stated that McNabb asked Cantor whether she was a "squirter," among other comments in the same vein.
Prior to their terminations, McNabb had been a regular guest on First Take, while Davis primarily worked in radio for ESPN in Los Angeles. While Sapp denied the claims against him and posted a bizarre series of tweets (including a picture of the sex toy he is alleged to have purchased for a co-worker), neither McNabb nor Davis have tweeted since they were initially suspended on December 12. McNabb did post a photo of his family on Instagram on Christmas.
McNabb spent 13 years in the NFL and was named to six Pro Bowls, while Davis played 12 seasons, appeared in two Pro Bowls, and won Super BowL XXIX as a member of the San Francisco 49ers. The pair are the latest to be fired as part of the wave of sexual harassment and assault allegations that have swept through both the sports world and the media at large.
The firings also come during a tumultuous time for ESPN, as president John Skipper recently resigned due to a substance abuse issue and the company has been forced into large-scale layoffs.
