Marcus Spears is an NFL analyst for ESPN who appears daily on NFL Live. The former NFL defensive end initially joined ESPN as a college football analyst for the SEC Network in April 2014.

Spears began appearing on NFL Live in 2019, which led to him assuming a pro football-centric analyst role in June 2020. In addition to appearing on ESPN’s weekday NFL news and information show, Spears is a regular contributor to Get Up, SportsCenter, First Take and other ESPN television and radio shows.

Spears and longtime friend, NBA Champion Kendrick Perkins, co-host the podcast, Swagu & Perk, where they discuss the NFL, the NBA, culture and life.

Prior to focusing on the NFL, Spears provided analysis on SEC Network’s popular Saturday morning football pregame show SEC Nation alongside Tim Tebow, Paul Finebaum and host Laura Rutledge. He also launched Thinking Out Loud on SEC Network, joining Greg McElroy and Alyssa Lang for a weekly hour of SEC football banter.

Drafted in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft by the Dallas Cowboys, Spears played defensive end for nine NFL seasons, retiring in 2014.

At LSU, Spears played tight end, fullback and defensive end under Nick Saban from 2001-04. During his sophomore year he became a full-time defensive player, and his contributions to the team helped lead the Tigers to two SEC Championships titles (2001, 2003) and a win in the 2004 BCS National Championship.

Spears hails from Baton Rouge, La, where he was a highly sought after two-sport high school athlete, recruited for both basketball and football. In April 2021, he was inducted into the Louisiana High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame.