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ESPN NFL analyst Ryan Clark learned he had been laid off by the company while he was in the middle of a show.
Clark was taping "NFL Live" on Monday when he was informed during a commercial break he was among those affected by ESPN's latest round of layoffs, TheWrap has learned. He did not return to finish the program.
ESPN had planned to notify all affected employees through its standard process, but accelerated Clark's notification after an incoming media inquiry signaled a report on his departure was set to publish live, according to an individual with knowledge of the decision. The person said the network wanted Clark to hear the news directly from ESPN rather than learn about it on his phone. Clark was not told he could not finish the show, but because he was appearing via Zoom, he and the network mutually agreed that he would not return on air after the break.
Clark being a part of the layoffs may not surprise some following comments he made last fall belittling fellow analyst Peter Schrager while they were in a debate about the Dallas Cowboys' performance. Clark told Schrager that his defense of the Cowboys' lackluster play was "the non-player in you." He later apologized to Schrager for the comment.
"Before the madness of yesterday, I woke up, got in my Tundra, drove to Planet Fitness, and got to work," Clark wrote on Instagram Tuesday. "The rest of the day was eventful, but the journey continues. My peace is with God, and my humility comes from within. I'll continue to build myself so the world can never strip me of what's real."
It was announced Tuesday that ESPN was going through another round of layoffs in the wake of their acquisition of the NFL Network. The company went through a previous wave of cuts back in April.
"Over the past several months, we've made significant progress integrating the NFL assets that we acquired into ESPN. Throughout this process, we have taken the time to carefully evaluate our collective teams, resources and organizational structure to best position us for the future," chairman Jimmy Pitaro shared in a staff memo on Tuesday. "As a result, we had to make some difficult decisions about job impacts that we will be communicating today."
"While most of the job impacts are tied to the acquisition, we will also notify colleagues in other parts of the company today that their positions have been impacted. We are committed to treating employees with compassion and respect and to providing support as they navigate this transition," he continued. "Even in moments like these, the strength of ESPN comes from our people, our teamwork and our shared mission to serve sports fans."
The Athletic was the first to report the news.
The post ESPN Layoffs: NFL Analyst Ryan Clark Exits After Mid-Broadcast Firing appeared first on TheWrap.
