R.I.P.: John Clayton, Seattle Sports Personality, NFL Analyst

John Clayton, a Hall of Fame football journalist, and a Seattle radio institution, passed away Friday afternoon. He was 67-years-olf age, according to Seattle Sports 710 AM.

Known to millions as “The Professor,” John had a 50-year career in sports media that included covering the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks, a long tenure as a beloved ESPN NFL analyst, and serving as host of sports radio shows in Seattle, including Seattle Sports 710 AM for the past 14 years. He was a daily presence on the Seattle Sports Station, hosted The John Clayton Show on Saturday mornings, and was a longtime contributor to SeattleSports.com as a Seahawks and NFL columnist.

“John was a treasured member of our team,” said Bonneville Seattle Senior Vice President and Market Manager Cathy Cangiano. “John was a legend in our industry and a true Hall of Famer. He was a consistent advocate for the game of football.

“His connections, friendships and relationships throughout the sports world were simply unmatched. His love of football was only surpassed by his love, loyalty and dedication to his wife Pat. John will be greatly missed. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Pat and his family and friends.”

John Clayton

John started his career in 1972 covering his hometown Pittsburgh Steelers, then served as a Seattle Seahawks reporter for The Tacoma News Tribune. He was hired in 1995 by ESPN to cover the NFL and was a regular on the channel’s programming for 20 years. He was perhaps best known for his weekly “Four Downs” segment with former NFL quarterback Sean Salisbury, which was a can’t-miss television for football fans. He also starred in one of the most memorable “This is SportsCenter” commercials in the long history of the ESPN campaign.

In 1995, Clayton joined ESPN as a reporter and later added to his duties a weekly radio show during the NFL offseason. He hosted the show with former NFL quarterback Sean Salisbury; the show included "Four Downs," a debate with Salisbury over current NFL issues. Their debates often became quite heated, with Salisbury referring to Clayton as the "Cryptkeeper" and "Mr. Peabody", mocking his geeky and "eggheaded" appearance and voice, and Clayton responding by calling Salisbury "Mr. Backup" based on his limited playing time during his NFL career. There is debate as to seriousness of the animosity between Clayton and Salisbury.

Clayton remained a frequent contributor to KJR (AM), and hosted its "Sports Saturday" show on Saturday mornings. He was a regular caller to sports-talk radio stations around the country. Because of the transition to all-sports of KIRO (AM) Seattle, Clayton moved his show to the new ESPN station.

Clayton also contributed to 104.3 The Fan's website and radio station in Denver. Also, he was a weekly guest on The Mightier 1090AM's Kaplan & Crew show in San Diego.

The greatest SportsCenter commercial ever. RIP John Clayton. pic.twitter.com/84En0H7W8G

— Field Yates (@FieldYates) March 19, 2022

In 2007, John was honored with The Bill Nunn Memorial Award, presented annually by the Professional Football Writers of America for long and distinguished reporting on football.