Chaos at ESPN as ‘cowardly’ execs are slammed for firing $2m-a-year star MID-SHOW… with more layoffs expected today
ESPN descended into chaos on Monday night after $2million-a-year NFL analyst Ryan Clark was told he was being fired in the middle of his show, with more layoffs expected today.
The former Steelers safety – who had been with the network for more than a decade – did not finish the program and immediately left the set, according to reports.
Sources told The Athletic that Clark was informed while filming NFL Live amid fears that his departure could be leaked before he was made aware of it.
It sparked a huge reaction on social media, with fans wondering who might be next.
Emmanuel Acho, who was fired by Fox Sports last year, took aim at ‘cowardly’ TV execs for laying off Clark during the middle of taping.
‘More often than not, executives are cowards,’ the retired linebacker said. ‘Former athletes, we’re used to tough information. Just tell it to us!
Ryan Clark reportedly discovered he was being laid off by ESPN while he was taping NFL Live
Clark (second left) appeared alongside the likes of Jason Kelce and Marcus Spears on NFL Countdown
‘[We’ve been] cut before, [we’ve had] broken bones before, had surgeries before. Ryan Clark notably couldn’t play a game in Denver, Colorado, because he had [an autoimmune disease]… we’re used to tough things! Just tell us!’
It was later reported that more layoffs were expected in the coming hours – just as NFL teams begin to return for training camps this week – and that came to fruition shortly before 9am on Tuesday morning.
Front Office Sports is reporting that Karl Ravech, a mainstay of the network for more than 30 years, is expected to be laid off in the latest round of cuts.
Ravech joined ESPN as an anchor in 1993 and was a longtime Sportscenter and Baseball Tonight host, while also serving as lead caller of Sunday Night Baseball from 2022 to 2025.
ESPN’s pivot away from baseball, after opting out of its previous MLB package, has left much uncertainty for the sport’s analysts, and Ravech is among the first to be booted.
The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand claimed that the leading network, and its sister platform NFL Network, will see more big names slashed this week as part of wider job losses at parent company Disney.
The cuts are expected to include a number of on-air personalities based at ESPN’s Bristol, Connecticut HQ, as well as a larger portion of on-air and off-air talent from NFL Network.
Karl Ravech, pictured on Baseball Tonight with Justin Verlander, is being laid off, per FOS
The 46-year-old former NFL star had been with the network for more than a decade
The layoffs stem from ESPN’s February acquisition of NFL Network, which came at a cost of around $3 billion and saw the NFL secure a 10 percent stake in the broadcaster.
ESPN has declined to comment on Clark’s firing or any more potential cuts in the coming hours.
The 46-year-old pundit won an Emmy for Outstanding Personality/Studio Analyst in 2023.
On social media, Acho added: ‘Firing a man during his show that he’s helped bring an Emmy award is wild! Why did they say they did it? Because they didn’t want him to find out on social media.
‘So you fire him during a show and pull him during the last ten minutes of a segment? Last year, when I got fired… we found out on social media.’
The Athletic later reported that ESPN initially planned to inform Clark on Tuesday morning that he was being let go. However, ESPN is said to have feared the story would leak before then.
Clark, who was reportedly making more than $2million a year at ESPN, had been expected to play a key role in the network’s coverage of Super Bowl LXI next season.
Ravech (left) has been with ESPN more than 30 years but is expected to lose his job this week
Clark also got into a heated on-air fight with colleague Peter Schrager in September last year
But the former safety has been embroiled in a number of high-profile controversies in recent years after clashing with the likes of Robert Griffin III and Peter Schrager.
His bitter feud with the latter led to a social media apology, in which he admitted he needed to become a ‘better teammate’.
The fight came while he was already facing criticism for claiming that retired quarterbacks Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Peyton Manning were not ‘generational talents’ at the position, and he went on to dig his hole a bit deeper by attacking Schrager’s background.
Specifically, Clark took issue with Schrager – at the time a new, big-money ESPN hire – because he didn’t play college or professional football.
‘We shouldn’t do this on TV,’ Clark said. ‘I apologize if people think this is rude – that’s the non-player in you.’
Schrager immediately rejected that argument. ‘Stop,’ he said. ‘I’m not looking at fantasy football. Ryan, don’t belittle me like that. I can come and say, as three ex-players are saying one thing, and give an alternative perspective.’
Clark, though, wasn’t finished.
Just two days ago, Clark (left) was on stage in New York for a Fanatics Fest panel
More layoffs are expected at ESPN’s Bristol, Connecticut, headquarters on Tuesday
‘What I need you to do is to not get mad and let me finish for one,’ he told Schrager, who obliged. ‘It wasn’t about you, it was going to be about me.’
Since then, Clark has issued an apology over the incident, while alluding to something else that happened off air between himself and Schrager.
‘Today, I had an interaction with my colleague [Peter Schrager] both on and off the air that I regret,’ Clark wrote on X. ‘I have apologized to Peter and taken accountability with ESPN leadership.
‘I value working with Peter and look forward to this season. My focus will remain on professionalism, teamwork, and being a better teammate moving forward.’
