ESPN revealed the 2023 cast for Monday Night Countdown, which will include a few new faces.
Per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, Ryan Clark and Marcus Spears will be joining the show as analysts. They will be replacing Steve Young, who was laid off by ESPN last year, and Booger McFarland, who still works for the company but wasn't announced to be returning for this season of Monday Night Countdown.
In addition to Clark and Spears being named as analysts, it was also announced that Robert Griffin III will be returning, and "multiple appearances" would be made by Larry Fitzgerald and Alex Smith throughout the year.
A former NFL safety who played 13 seasons, Clark joined ESPN in 2015 and he has established himself as one of the best football analysts in recent years. He won the Outstanding Personality/Studio Analyst award for the first time in his career at the 44th annual Sports Emmy Awards in May.
Ryan Clark @Realrclark25We'll look at that!! Grateful to be on the Monday Night Countdown crew with such an amazingly talented group of people. Let's Geaux!! <a href="">
Ryan Clark @Realrclark25Let's Effing Geaux!! Man this is so dope family. <a href="">@mspears96</a> let's go kill em. <a href="">
Spears is a former defensive end who played nine seasons in the NFL and has become a mainstay on ESPN's football programming. He first joined the company in 2014 as the co-host of SEC Nation. In April, he re-signed with ESPN on a four-year contract worth nearly $7 million, per Andrew Marchand of the New York Post.
Marcus Spears @mspears96Bruh!!! These folks done put me on Monday Night Countdown!!! Humbled but we bout to have some fun y'all 🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾 <a href="">
Scott Van Pelt was announced as the host replacing Suzy Kolber, who was among the ESPN layoffs from the end of June. Van Pelt will also host the post-game SportsCenter from the site of the Monday Night Football game with Clark participating.
"It was reported that I was the guy, and other than me not having been offered the job or accepting the job that I haven't been offered, it was spot on," Van Pelt said last month during an appearance on the Dan Patrick Show, per Marchand. "God, that was weird. I mean, you read things and you're like, 'Whoa.' People were congratulating me, and things of that nature."
