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Ryan Clark spent 12 years as a safety in the NFL, and his ESPN career lasted almost as long.
Clark was laid off from the global sports broadcast network on Monday after 11 years — and the kicker is he was informed during the middle of a show that was live on air, according to The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand.
“ESPN has cut ties with NFL analyst Ryan Clark, sources briefed on the move told The Athletic,” Marchand reported. “Clark was on ESPN’s ‘NFL Live’ on Monday. He was informed of the decision during the show, said the sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter. Clark did not finish the program.”
Marchand also revealed the network informed Clark during the show because it was worried about the news leaking and him finding out via social media. The initial plan was allegedly to inform Clark of the news on Tuesday morning.
Reports had been swirling since the Super Bowl that Clark could be part of company-wide layoffs, and The Athletic reportedly was informed Clark was on the chopping block last week.
Clark is a somewhat controversial media personality with many of his opinions rubbing NFL fans the wrong way. However, the consensus ons social media Monday night was that ESPN had done him dirty.
Clark’s broadcasting career began in 2015 when ESPN signed him to fill analyst roles on several shows including “NFL Live,” “SportsCenter,” “Get Up,” and “First Take.”
He also appeared as a weekly guest on “Inside the NFL” in 2023, the same year he won the award for Outstanding Personality/Studio Analyst at the 44th Sports Emmy Awards.
Marchand also reported that more layoffs are expected to be announced in the coming days at both ESPN and NFL Network, which was purchased by ESPN months ago along with all other NFL Media properties for roughly $3 billion.
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