ESPN made headlines on Monday when it announced that longtime analyst and former NFL player Ryan Clark was the first in a long list of layoffs. Clark had been with ESPN since 2015, but the network will now move in another direction, much to the dismay of one of the faces of their network, Stephen A. Smith.
Stephen A. Smith Voices His Distaste for ESPN Letting Ryan Clark Go
“My brother, Ryan Clark, a person that I consider to be arguably the best NFL analyst in America, is no longer a member of ESPN,” Smith said. “I can’t even tell y’all how much that hurts.”
Clark played 13 years in the NFL, eight of which were with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Smith’s favorite NFL team. In those 13 seasons, Clark registered 938 tackles (651 solo, 287 assists), 19 tackles for loss, 16 interceptions, five forced fumbles, and eight fumble recoveries. He was regarded as one of the hardest-hitting safeties, making one Pro Bowl in his career, and helping shape the identity of one of the NFL’s most physical defenses.
Following his playing career, the former Super Bowl Champion has made a name for himself in sports media, working with ESPN as an analyst and making his own podcast, “The Pivot Podcast,” with Channing Crowder and Fred Taylor.
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Not only has he been working in sports media for 11 years, but he has also been recognized, receiving an Emmy Award for Outstanding Personality/Studio Analyst at the 44th Annual Sports Emmy Awards in 2023.
“I’m going to miss him,” Smith added. “I am not happy about this decision one bit. The bosses know I’m not happy about this decision, I’ve made that very, very clear.”
Clark was a regular analyst on “NFL Live” but also appeared on numerous ESPN shows, including “Get Up”, “SportsCenter”, and “First Take”.
The news came as a surprise, as Clark was told while he was on air working on “NFL Live,” and he didn’t finish the show.
“It’s Tuesday, and by the end of this day, you’re going to hear about a lot more folks getting laid off,” Smith added. “I don’t know the names yet, but for all I know, some more of my friends are going to be gone. The only thing that I can definitively say to you is that there’s nobody that’s going to be let go that was more of a friend and a brother to me than Ryan Clark.”
Clark was the first domino to fall, but he has reportedly been joined by several colleagues, including Bart Scott, Tom Pelissero, Karl Ravech, Cam Newton, Charles Davis, and others.
The layoffs are shocking to many and have sparked plenty of discussion on social media, and they are likely to continue to do so as long as new information emerges. What the future holds for each of those who have been laid off remains to be seen, but in the meantime, ESPN will look very different, with many familiar faces no longer on the network.
