Ryan Clark parted ways with ESPN ahead of the 2026 season. On Monday, he was abruptly fired from his job while on-air on the "NFL Live" show. This led to ESPN receiving a lot of backlash and criticism for this situation.
On Thursday's episode of "Speakeasy," former NFL wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh discussed Ryan Clark's firing. He also revealed an unheard story about the ex-safety-turned-analyst while showcasing his support for his future endeavors.
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Ryan Clark played in the NFL for 13 years from 2002 to 2014. He announced his retirement in 2015 and joined ESPN as an analyst that same year. He made appearances on several of the network's shows, such as First Take, NFL Live, SportsCenter, Get Up and Inside the NFL.
According to reports, ESPN had planned to tell Clark about his layoff on Tuesday. However, they were made aware of a report about to be dropped about the ex-safety. Thus, they decided to let him know about his situation on Monday.
TMZ reported that Ryan Clark was made aware of his firing during a commercial break while filming NFL Live. However, he denied it in a tweet, stating that he was forced to leave while on air.
On Monday, Stephen A. Smith discussed Ryan Clark's abrupt firing on "NFL Live." He expressed his disagreement with the situation and heaped praise on the former safety, calling him an excellent analyst.
Smith also stated that the network's upper management is aware of his displeasure with Clark's exit.
Apart from Clark, ESPN reportedly parted ways with Cam Newton and Tom Pelissero in their new round of layoffs.
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