We should leave Skip Bayless in the past

The Skip Bayless era at Fox Sports 1 is mercifully nearing its end. With his antics wearing thin, hopefully, he'll no longer pollute our airwaves.

Following reports that Fox Sports won't renew Bayless' contract when it lapses this summer, some have suggested ESPN could swoop in and rehire the former newspaper reporter-turned-obnoxious TV personality.

"Picking Bayless up off the scrap heap would be a coup de grace" for ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, Front Office Sports' Michael McCarthy wrote Tuesday. 

Smith and Bayless helped build today's exhausting sports media apparatus where hot takes and shouting matches are encouraged more often than facts and decency.

Bayless left ESPN for Fox Sports in 2016.

Thankfully, ESPN appears uninterested in a reunion with McCarthy quoting an ESPN spokesman as telling FOS, "We are set with the current 'First Take' rotation, and wish Skip the best on his future endeavors."

While it might seem like bringing Bayless back into the fold could create a ratings bonanza, the pathetic viewership of "Undisputed" suggests the public has already moved on from him.

In March, during the height of March Madness, "Undisputed" drew a measly 48,000 viewers per show, which Sports Media Watch noted was "the show's smallest audience since returning from hiatus last year."

Viewership declined even further a month later on the morning of the NFL Draft's first round when 45,000 people tuned in — or simply lost their remote and couldn't change the channel.

Bayless addition to ESPN would also rankle ESPN's highest-paid employee, "Monday Night Football" color commentator Troy Aikman.

In 2016, when Aikman worked for Fox and the network hired Bayless, he blasted the decision, telling Sports Illustrated he was "disappointed" with executives, including former Fox Sports president of national networks Jamie Horowitz.

"Clearly, Jamie Horowitz and I have a difference of opinion when it comes to building a successful organization," Aikman said then. "I believe success is achieved by acquiring and developing talented, respected and credible individuals, none of which applies to Skip Bayless."

Their feud stems from Bayless' tabloid journalism reporting in his 1996 book on the Cowboys, "Hell-Bent," which laid out baseless rumors about Aikman.

Bayless has been more interested in sensationalizing stories than uncovering the truth for decades. 

His act is old and tiring. When Bayless is finally out at FS1 later this year, the last thing we need is for him to find a seat at another debate table.