Jonathan Coachman – WWE
Salary: $500,000 per year
WWE pre-show host Jonathan Coachman, also known as “The Coach”, has been interviewing, presenting and commentating on WWE matches since 1999. Coachman has been casting on both Smackdown and Raw over the years and even became Interim General Manager of the Raw brand. Outside of WWE, coachman devoted almost a decade to work with ESPN, presenting highlights of the WWE’s best moments and interviewing the WWE stars on SportsCenter.
Coachman has a modest Instagram account with just over ten thousand followers. Coachman’s father had suffered from heart problems and was facing the risk of death until he was transplanted a new heart by a matching donor. Since the incident, Coachman has decided to pay it forward and helps Saint Luke’s Foundation raise money for supporting, researching and educating communities on health-related issues.
Jerry Glanville - HBO, CBS, Fox
Salary: $170,000 per year
The famous veteran head coach Jerry Glanville just can't quit football. He's best known for wearing black attire to games, leaving tickets at will-call for Elvis Presley and driving replica cars of those driven by James Dean. He is one of the most iconic and expressive coaches and to this day still continues to help with strategy as the defensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Vipers. Glanville has been coaching for over 5 decades now and even had a Sega Genesis game with his name's brand called "Jerry Glanville's Pigskin Football".
When asked during an interview about his plans for the future he happily said that his goal is to die from old age while running a blitz on the practice field. To this day he still goes everywhere in a cowboy hat and awesome sunglasses (with his signature all-black attire). Based on his never-ending smile and playful expression it seems that Glanville is one of those unique and inspiring individuals that found a true calling for their lives.
Jim Ross - AEW
Salary: $1 million per year
Jim Ross, the man who seems to never age, has been commentating on WWE and other wrestling network matches for the last 45 years. Most fans and hosts refer to him as "Good Ol' JR", seemingly for his being in the business longer than anyone else to date. He's also sometimes called the "Voice of Wrestling". Ross received recognition for his years of work with the WWE when he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2007. Outside of wrestling, Ross also commentates with FoxSports.com and does the occasional play-by-play on boxing and MMA matches.
The successful WWE commentator started his own weekly podcast a few years ago named The Jim Ross Report, whose name was changed to "Grilling JR". JR also provided his voice for many of the annual WWE video-games and wrote 2 books about wrestling which have become New York Times Best-Sellers. Fun fact: Ross has a strong affinity with BBQ and created his very own brand of barbecue sauce and beef jerky.
Stephen A. Smith - ESPN
Salary: $10 million per year
Stephen A. Smith is a commentator on ESPN's daily American sports talk show First Take along with Max Kellerman and Milly Qerim. The commentator, host, journalist, and actor also appears often as an NBA analyst in both SportsCenter and NBA Countdown, both owned by ESPN. Smith was born in the Bronx in New York City in 1967 and received a basketball scholarship to attend Winston-Salem State University. The sportscaster played college basketball and was coached by Clarence Gaines, the highly decorated Hall of Fame coach until he officially began his media career in 1994 as a writer for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Smith is well known for using recurring catchphrases as well as his very opinionated personality, especially his strong animosity towards the Dallas Cowboys. His most well-known catchphrase is referring to things that don’t make sense to him as “blasphemous”. Not one to shy away from expressing his opinions, Smith is also a very strong critic of NFL and NBA players' use of marijuana, and loudly tells players to "Stay off the weed!" You can catch his appearance in the 2007 film “I Think I Love My Wife” starring and directed by Chris Rock.
Teddy Atlas - ESPN
Salary: $2 million per year
You may not have heard of the name Teddy Atlas, but you would probably recognize him by his distinct facial scar. However, if you don't, and you're a boxing fan - this is one person you want to know. Atlas is a boxing trainer and fight commentator with a rough past. He has been around the block and has hung out with some of the most well-known boxers and trainers of all time. Despite a troubled and rebellious youth that led him to get arrested often and even get slashed in the face (causing him to be forever scarred), Teddy Atlas managed to find himself in better circumstances when he got to train with the legendary Hall of Fame boxing trainer - Cus D'Amato.
The Jewish-Irish boxer's career didn't last long though - and was cut short by a back injury. Atlas then changed his focus to training boxers rather than participating, and got a chance to help train Mike Tyson, Michael Moorer, Barry McGuigan, and even Timothy Bradley. Atlas also worked as a commentator in various networks including ESPN but was suspended after 21 years of commentating due to various comments and even threatening a crew member. In 2005, Atlas was inducted into the New Jersey Boxing Hall of Fame, and has since lent his voice to popular boxing game Fight Night Round 4 and Fight Night Champion.