John Clayton, NFL Insider and Former ESPN Reporter, Dies at Age 67

The Seattle Seahawks announced Friday night that longtime ESPN and NFL reporter John Clayton died after a brief illness. He was 67. 

Clayton's long and storied career in NFL journalism took him from the Pittsburgh Press, Tacoma News Tribune and ESPN to gigs with Seattle Sports 710 on the radio and Seattle Seahawks Radio Network as a sideline reporter. 

The Steelers, one of the teams Clayton covered during his career, paid tribute Friday:

A number of Clayton's former ESPN colleagues also paid their respects:

And journalists from around the NFL world and other outlets took the time to honor Clayton as a man and reporter:

"Anyone paying attention walked away a little more educated," ESPN NFL reporter Chris Mortensen once said of Clayton. 

In 2007, the man nicknamed "The Professor" earned the Bill Nunn Memorial Award, which is presented by the Professional Football Writers of America each year for distinguished reporting across a journalist's career. 

For 50 years, Clayton covered the NFL with passion and integrity, adapting to the game as it evolved and the sportswriting profession changed alongside it. 

"I love this stuff," he told Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette in 2018 about covering the NFL. "What I love about it is there's so much more stuff we didn't have access to years ago and now we do—the salary information, NFL Game Rewind where you can watch coaches tape. There's so much information and analytical stuff, it's phenomenal.

"That energizes me. I feel like a student still learning because you pick up all this stuff. I get excited about the little things."