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Former Pittsburgh Steelers Pro Bowl safety and Super Bowl champion Ryan Clark was let go by ESPN on July 20, and the longtime NFL pro received the news mid-episode while filming “NFL Live.”
The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand was the first to report the news of Clark’s dismissal, posting that “ESPN cut ties with Ryan Clark as the first part of broader layoffs that are expected tomorrow, The Athletic has learned.”
He added that “Clark was informed during ‘NFL Live’ [and] did not finish the program on [July 20].”
Per Marchand and The Athletic: “Sources at ESPN say the reason they told Clark during the show was due to media inquiries into his departure and a fear that the news would leak out before they could inform him.”
Marchand also noted that his sources told him that Clark’s job “could be in jeopardy” since February, and that the news of his layoff was labeled “likely” last week.
The original “plan” was to part ways with Clark on the morning of July 21, according to Marchand and ESPN. But the aforementioned fear of the news being leaked expedited their decision.
Ryan Clark’s Handling of the Damar Hamlin Injury Was Praised Around the NFL Community
During his NFL career, Clark worked his way from undrafted rookie to Super Bowl champion starter and Pro Bowler. His media career was similar, as the former 160-game NFL starter (including playoffs) enjoyed a meteoric rise as a studio and pregame analyst.
Among other on-camera moments, Clark was praised for his handling of the life-threatening Damar Hamlin injury that left the NFL community stunned and heartbroken.
“I think the first thing: This is about Damar Hamlin,” Clark said at the time. “It’s about a young man at 24 years old that was living his dream. That, a few hours ago, was getting ready to play the biggest game of his NFL career. And there’s probably nowhere else in the world he wanted to be. And now, he fights for his life.”
“When Damar Hamlin falls to the turf, and when you see the medical staff rush to the field, and both teams are on the field, you realize this isn’t normal,” he continued. “You realize this isn’t just football. I dealt with this before, and I watched my teammates, for days, come to my hospital bed and just cry. I had them call me and tell me that they didn’t think I was gonna make it. And now this team has to deal with that, and they have no answers.”
“And so the next time that we get upset at our favorite fantasy player, or we’re upset that the guy on our team doesn’t make the play, and we’re saying he’s worthless and we’re saying ‘you get to make all this money,’ we should remember that these guys are putting their lives on the line to live this dream,” Clark concluded at the time.
He was widely lauded for this emotional on-air speech.
A Look at Ex-Steelers DB Ryan Clark’s NFL & Broadcast Career After ESPN News
It’s unclear what the future holds for Clark, but this news seems to end the ESPN tenure of his career.
Marchand detailed Clark’s NFL career, from playing to broadcasting, writing: “Clark, 46, played 13 seasons in the NFL, mostly with the Pittsburgh Steelers, after entering the league as an undrafted free agent in 2002. His playing career ended after the 2014 season, and he transitioned into a broadcasting role at ESPN, working his way up the network’s depth chart. He ultimately landed on the prestigious ‘Monday Night Countdown,’ sitting next to host Scott Van Pelt and analysts Jason Kelce and Marcus Spears. He was on the program for three years.”
“Clark was also a regular on shows such as ‘First Take,’ ‘Get Up’ and ‘NFL Live,’” Marchand went on. “Clark has his own podcast, ‘The Pivot,’ on which he often speaks from the heart about issues that impact athletes.”
He recently re-signed with ESPN in 2024. Clark began his pro career with the New York Giants and Washington Commanders (formerly Redskins) organizations before truly making a name for himself in Pittsburgh.
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