Remembering John Clayton

Longtime ESPN NFL reporter John Clayton died Friday, his family announced. A brief illness took him at 67 years old. 

Clayton covered the NFL for ESPN from 1995 through 2017, and prior to that spent 23 years covering the Steelers for the Pittsburgh Press and the Seahawks for the Tacoma News Tribune. Clayton continued covering the Seahawks after leaving ESPN, breaking down the Russell Wilson trade for Seattle Sports 710 AM. In all, Clayton's career began as a Pittsburgh-area high schooler and lasted more than 50 years. 

In 2007, Clayton won the Bill Nunn, Jr., Award from the Professional Football Writers of America for "long and distinguished reporting on professional football."

"The PFWA mourns the passing of John Clayton. John was the PFWA's 19th president (1999-2000) and the organization's 2007 Bill Nunn Jr. Award recipient," the organization said in a statement. "'The Professor' was a friend to so many in our business. Our condolences to his wife Pat, family, colleagues and his many friends."

"Until they plant me, I guess," he told the Pittsburgh Post Gazette in 2018, when asked how long he'll keep covering the NFL. "I love this stuff. 

Those who knew Clayton remember how much he loved the game and the people in it.

Of course, we can't remember John without mentioning his legendary This is SportsCenter commercial.