49ers Suspend Radio Announcer Tim Ryan After Remark About Lamar Jackson’s ‘Dark’ Skin Color
The San Francisco 49ers announced this week the suspension of radio announcer Tim Ryan for an offensive comment he made about Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson‘s dark skin tone. Ryan will not work the Niner’s road game against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
Ryan made the remark in his weekly appearance on KNBR radio station’s Murph and Mac morning show. He was explaining his take on Jackson’s skill in faking handoffs in the Ravens‘ victory over the 49ers last weekend and appeared to suggest the black Baltimore QB — who is believed to be a serious MVP award contender — had an advantage on the field because his skin color is so dark.
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“He’s really good at that fake, Lamar Jackson, but when you consider his dark skin color with a dark football with a dark uniform, you could not see that thing,” said Ryan, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. “I mean you literally could not see when he was in and out of the mesh point and if you’re a half step slow on him in terms of your vision forget about it, he’s out of the gate.”
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Snippet of Tim Ryan’s comments
RE: Lamar Jackson’s “dark skin with a dark football with a dark uniform… you could not see that thing” via KNBR. He has since been suspended by the team….
pic.twitter.com/fJwSIr0O6i— Sports ON Tap (@SONTHighlights) December 5, 2019
49ers Broadcaster Tim Ryan Awarded Donkey Of The Day For Controversial Lamar Jackson Comment https://t.co/Nhixyk98Y1 pic.twitter.com/fLMWILWuaq
— DV The Bossman (@HollaAtEmDV) December 5, 2019
Ryan, who was been the 49ers’ radio color analyst since 2014, later apologized to the team in a statement:
Tim Ryan’s apology statement … https://t.co/i5NDnEGCbz pic.twitter.com/a4tcLoAJOW
— 49ers & NFL News 24/7 (@49ersSportsTalk) December 5, 2019
“I regret my choice of words in trying to describe the conditions of the game,” said Ryan. “Lamar Jackson is an MVP-caliber player and I respect him greatly. I want to sincerely apologize to him and anyone else I offended.”
The 49ers condemned Ryan’s comments about Jackson in a statement in which they also apologized to the Ravens:
49ers: “… Tim has expressed remorse in a public statement and has also done so with us privately. We know Tim as a man of high integrity and are confident he will grow and learn from this experience.
— ??? ????? (@CamInman) December 5, 2019
Ryan previously served as an NFL game analyst on Fox. He also played for the Chicago Bears as a defensive tackle during the early 1990s.
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