Howie Mandel isn't about to walk back the comment he made about Sofía Vergara's relationship status during a live episode of America's Got Talent on Tuesday night. In case you missed it, Howie was giving feedback after watching a ventriloquist performance involving a puppet being set up with an eligible bachelor, and said "If you're looking for eligible bachelors, you should've talked to Sofía because she's in the market right now."

Sofía took the comment in stride and had a good laugh, but some viewers felt his words were out of line and inappropriate.

Howie ended up defending the comment amid backlash, telling Extra, "People were online saying, ‘Too soon.’ I think as soon as you’re available, it’s never too soon. She’s fresh, people. People thought that was mean and insensitive. If you watched Sofía, she screamed after she came over to me and thought it was funny. She said, ‘Yes,’ so she’s got a great sense of humor and I wouldn’t do anything to hurt a fellow—a friend first, and a fellow co-worker.”

He went on to say that “I think everybody watching who is available believes they’re the perfect match for Sofía. I don’t think, Sofía, to be honest… she doesn’t need my help. She really doesn't. I believe that she'll be fending them off. I mean, she is a great friend, a brilliant person, businessperson, a powerhouse, an amazing sense of humor. She checks every box, so whoever ends up with Sofía is going to be really, really lucky.”

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