The CW is tapping Super Bowl Champion and former NFL safety Ryan Clark as the host of its weekly studio series “Inside the NFL,” which will premiere Sept. 5.
Clark’s career as a safety spanned 13 seasons and included a Super Bowl XLIII title and two AFC Championships. He played a majority of his career with the Pittsburgh Steelers (2006-13), two years with the New York Giants (2002-03) and two stints with the Washington Redskins (2004-05 and 2014).
He currently serves as an analyst on ESPN’s “Monday Night Countdown” and regularly appears on ESPN’s “NFL Live,” “First Take,” “Get Up” and “SportsCenter.” In January 2022, Clark launched “The Pivot Podcast” with Crowder and Fred Taylor.
He will be joined by a panel of analysts comprised of former Miami Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder, Pro Bowl quarterback Jay Cutler, Pro Bowl wide receiver Chad Johnson and two-time Super Bowl champion defensive end and Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award-winner Chris Long. The group will offer unfiltered commentary while breaking down previously unseen highlights and exclusive NFL Films mic’d up sounds from the week’s top matchups.
“I dreamed of being a host, but not even in my wildest dreams did I think it would be the host of ‘Inside the NFL’,” Clark said in a statement. “I played against all the analysts who will be with me on Tuesday nights and always admired the way they approached the game of football. I’m excited to see that same passion poured into the new ‘Inside the NFL’ now that we are all on the same team.”
“Inside the NFL” is executive produced by Ross Ketover, Pat Kelleher and Keith Cossrow and produced by NFL Films.
The sports commentary show first debuted on HBO and holds the record as the cable channel’s longest-running series. “Inside the NFL” debuted new episodes on HBO from 1977 to 2008 before it went to Showtime following Super Bowl XLII. It remained there until it was moved to Paramount+ in 2021. The CW’s acquisition of the program marks the first time “Inside the NFL” has ever been on broadcast television.