Ryan Clark Addresses ESPN Firing, 'NFL Live' Exit, Conversations With Stephen A. Smith in Video

Former ESPN analyst Ryan Clark addressed his abrupt dismissal from the network in a Friday appearance on the Pivot Podcast.

The Athletic's Andrew Marchand reported Wednesday that Clark was informed of his dismissal from ESPN while filming NFL Live. Clark was not present for the episode's final segment.

"So, let me put this to bed. I wasn't laid off. I was fired," Clark said around the 13:45 mark of the podcast.

Clark continued, "I get a text from our showrunner that tells me to call my boss. I call my boss in the break."

At that point, Clark said he was told a story was about to leak about his dismissal from the network.

Clark previously took to social media to dispute a report as to how his firing had taken place.

Clark said around the 8:00 mark of the podcast he had gotten a "heads up" about a potential split between himself and the network last summer from fellow ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith.

He also said he felt there were "signs throughout the season" regarding his impending dismissal, including what he described as a lack of involvement in ESPN's scheduling around Super Bowl LXI.

After joining ESPN as an analyst immediately after retiring from his NFL playing career in 2015, Clark has regularly appeared on NFL Live in addition to First Take, Get Up and SportsCenter.

Clark's career as an analyst followed 13 seasons as an NFL safety, during which he earned a 2008 Pro Bowl nod and won Super Bowl XLIII with the Pittsburgh Steelers.