Hours After Aaron Rodgers’ Jets’ Allegations, Stephen A. Smith Advises Mecole Hardman to Sue

Mecole Hardman faced serious allegations from the New York Jets, and a certain TV personality thinks that the Chiefs’ star should go to the court. The wide receiver’s former teammate claims Hardman revealed the Jets’ plans to the opponent team last year.

Sports journalist Stephen A Smith feels Hardman should file a lawsuit against his previous team. He quoted the gravity and potential implications of the accusations on the Chiefs star’s career as the reason to take the serious step. Hardman helped the Chiefs win their second consecutive Super Bowl with his crucial touchdown. Before joining the Chiefs, the WR played five games with the Jets before being traded back.

The allegations could be a “career-ender,” per Smith

Stephen A Smith had some advice for Hardman amongst claims about him relaying inside game plans to the opposing team in one of their games last season. Jets’ Sauce Gardner posted a cryptic tweet accusing the wide receiver of leaking their offensive strategies to the Philadelphia Eagles before their matchup on October 15 last year. This claim was echoed by tight end Kenny Yeboah and later the franchise, per Connor Hughes.

Sports journalist Smith has expressed his strong opinions regarding the matter and advised the WR to take the Jets to the courts if the claims remain unsubstantiated. He also emphasized the seriousness of the allegations, calling them “career-ender.”

“That’s a career-ender. What locker room could he possibly go in if somebody believes it’s true? If evidence came out that this is remotely true, what locker room could he go in? Nah, he’s got to speak up today, and if the Jets are wrong, he’s got to consider legal action.” 

But what triggered the situation?

The war of words between Mecole Hardman and Yeboah

The tight end’s tweets have since been deleted, but they gave birth to an array of rumors surrounding Hardman. The Chiefs’ star has been vocal about not enjoying his time with the Jets. Hardman revealed that he had reached out to his previous home’s GM Brett Veach and QB Patrick Mahomes, asking them to “come get me,” during his appearance on The Pivot podcast. Hardman later denied talking with the Chiefs prior to his trade. He further wrote, “The Jets handled my trade on their own and did the right thing by sending me back to KC!”

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These statements prompted replies from the New York players, with ex-punter Thomas Morstead taking the lead. “Be careful getting information from disgruntled former employees,” he wrote on X. “Getting beat out by a rookie free agent after being guaranteed millions of dollars is tough to deal with. Entitlement is a killer of opportunity. You have to earn it every year.”

This led to Yeboah making his bold claim that would set off the current set of rumors. “He’s tripping out,” Yeboah said in a now-deleted post. “He ain’t talk about his own work ethic and how the Georgia Eagles got our game plan.”

The allegations come despite Hardman looking up to Jets’ quarterback and NFL legend Aaron Rodgers. The wide receiver has alleged that the Jets did not amend their offense after Rodgers’ went down with an injury for the entire season. “Yeah, we’re continuing trying to build the chemistry,” Hardman said of the quarterback last year before the 2023 season began. “Aaron is a tricky guy when it comes to certain things, but I think it comes with time.”

“I mean, the guy’s been doing it 19 years and he hasn’t been at the top of his game for this long for no reason,” he said. Despite his admiration for Rodgers, the Jets have accused the wide receiver of leaking game plans. They may not have played much together, but the franchise is seemingly driving a wedge between the two and may prompt a war of words.

It still remains to be seen if the Jets would follow through with the allegations against their former WR. At the NFL Scouting Combine, GM Joe Douglas said Mecole Hardman’s wishes of leaving the team and going back to the Chiefs “resonated” with the franchise, and they granted his wish. Hardman hasn’t made any statement in response yet. It will be interesting to see whether he chooses to remain silent and let the Jets take the first step. Or if the WR will follow Smith’s advice and take legal action.