The performance of Jimmy Clausen last night against the powerful Baltimore Ravens defense may have many in the Carolina area doing an Irish victory dance.  The Panthers seem to have gotten Clausen at a deal with a four-year $6.3 million contract with $2.53 million in guarantees.

In fact, ESPN analysts such as Keyshawn Johnson and Jon Gruden were ecstatic while talking about the performance.  While the overall stats of Clausen might not be quite so impressive (8 for 15 with an interception), Clausen still seems to be adjusting to NFL life rather quickly.  He seemed confident in his abilities and the interception was simply a product of his target falling leaving a wide open Raven waiting in the wings.

Many are also impressed with Clausen standing in the pocket and taking the certain sack rather than throwing a ball senselessly into the way of defenders.  This had already led to comparisons to Atlanta Falcon quarterback Matt Ryan.  Also of note was his ability to scramble and safely slide to the ground to pick up several yards when absolutely necessary.

The Panthers seem intent on starting Matt Moore at quarterback this season. but Clausen is making a case for starter and the Panthers have made that known.  While Matt Moore is 6 – 2 as a starter in the NFL it is worth mentioning that many of those games were meaningless after the Panthers were already essentially dead in contention for a playoff spot.

Some of the better quarterbacks in NFL history have come with late picks.  Brett Favre (33), Joe Montana (82) and Tom Brady (199) all came with selections that were in the second round or later.  Each of those quarterbacks made many other teams wonder what it was that made them select others ahead of them. 

Clausen’s journey to the NFL hit some bumps in the road leading up to the draft. In late 2009 he announced his intention to forego his senior season at Notre Dame and enter the NFL Draft and from that moment on was slated to be one of the best quarterbacks coming out, second only to Oklahoma product Sam Bradford. 

In the months leading up to April, Clausen was slotted as high as the 10^thoverall with many analysts pointing to the Kansas City Chiefs at No. 4 as a potential landing spot. Part of that prediction was based on the fact that former Irish coach Charlie Weis had become offensive coordinator there months after his firing from Notre Dame. 

Surprisingly, however,Tim Tebow was the only other quarterback selected in the first round after Sam Bradford leaving Clausen to fall to No. 16 in the second round (48^thoverall).  After the Draft, many pointed to Clausen’s cocky demeanor as the reason for the tumble.  However, many – including former NFL great and Notre Dame Quarterback Joe Montana – would come to the defense of Clausen by indicating that a certain level of confidence is required for a quarterback to be successful in the NFL.

After the performances of both Moore and Clausen last night the Panthers can feel comfortable knowing they have depth at the quarterback position.   In fact, they can take comfort in knowing they didn’t pass on Clausen or Moore.  In the not too distant future teams like Buffalo, San Francisco and Jacksonville may be scratching their heads while asking . . . . “What were we thinking?”

Used with permission of the author.

Cade Caldwell is an Atlanta-based sportswriter and contributor to Sports Climax.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

NEW YORK, N.Y. – The 2010 NFL Draft has been full of surprises. After much speculation about teams trading for the St. Louis Rams first pick in the 2nd round to land Notre Dame quarterback, Jimmy Clausen, the Rams kept the pick and Clausen dropped all the way down to 48th overall where he was selected by the Carolina Panthers.

Clausen’s drop in stock was one of the biggest surprises but he wasn’t alone. As Clausen squirmed in his seat, dropping 44 picks lower than the slot ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper, Jr. had him in, Texas Longhorns quarterback Colt McCoy dropped all the way into the 3rd round. McCoy was selected 85th overall by the Cleveland Browns who threw in the towel on the Brady Quinn project, trading Quinn to the Denver Broncos in the off season.

NFL 2010 DRAFT SECOND ROUND RESULTS

33. St. Louis Rams: Rodger Saffold- offensive tackle, Indiana
34. Minnesota Vikings: Chris Cook- cornerback, Virginia
35. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Brian Price- defensive tackle, UCLA
36. Kansas City Chiefs: Dexter McCluster- running back, Mississippi
37. Philadelphia Eagles: Nate Allen- safety, South Florida
38. Cleveland Browns: T.J. Ward- safety, Oregon
39. Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Arrelious Benn- wide receiver, Illinois
40. Miami Dolphins: Koa Misi- linebacker, Utah
41. Buffalo Bills: Torell Troup- defensive tackle, Central Florida
42. New England Patriots: Rob Gronkowski- tight end, Arizona
43. Baltimore Ravens: Sergio Kindle- linebacker, Texas
44. Oakland Raiders: Lamarr Houston- defensive tackle, Texas
45. Denver Broncos: Zane Beadles- offensive guard, Utah
46. New York Giants: Linval Joseph- defensive tackle, East Carolina
47. Arizona Cardinals: Daryl Washington- linebacker, TCU
48. Carolina Panthers: Jimmy Clausen- quarterback, Notre Dame
49. San Francisco 49ers: Taylor Mays- safety, USC
50. Kansas City Chiefs: Javier Arenas- cornerback, Alabama
51. Minnesota Vikings: Toby Gerhart- running back, Stanford
52. Pittsburgh Steelers: Jason Worilds- linebacker, Virginia Tech
53. New England Patriots: Jermaine Cunningham- linebacker, Florida
54. Cincinnati Bengals: Carlos Dunlap- defensive end, Florida
55. Dallas Cowboys: Sean Lee- linebacker, Penn State
56. Green Bay Packers: Michael Neal- defensive tackle, Purdue
57. Baltimore Ravens: Terrence Cody- defensive tackle, Alabama
58. Houston Texans: Ben Tate- running back, Auburn
59. Cleveland Browns: Montario Hardesty- running back, Tennessee
60. Seattle Seahawks: Golden Tate- wide receiver, Notre Dame
61. New York Jets: Vladimir Ducasse- offensive guard, UMass
62. New England Patriots: Brandon Spikes- linebacker, Florida
63. Indianapolis Colts: Patrick Angerer- linebacker, Iowa
64. New Orleans Saints: Charles Brown- offensive tackle, USC

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax™

High-profile NFL agent Gary Wichard who represents Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen and running back C.J.Spiller is facing pretty strong accusations that go along with a lawsuit filed by ex-NFL player Brian Bosworth.

Boz said he is out more than $2 million and is blaming Wichard.

Bosworth also said the agent had assured him that his investments were protected but it turns out, the financial advisor may have had a history of bad financial deals with another NFL player.

According to sources, the suit alleges that Wichard had direct knowledge that the business manager in question “had engaged in fraudulent activity.”

Bosworth’s lawsuit is asking for punitive damages, general damages and economic damages.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax™

SOUTH BEND – Notre Dame Fighting Irish quarterback Jimmy Clausen and receiver Golden Tate announced they will skip their final year at the university to enter the upcoming NFL draft.

The university made the announcement Monday on campus explaining the players made their decisions after speaking to fired head coach Charlie Weis this past weekend.

“Growing up as a kid, one of my lifelong dreams has been to play in the NFL and with that being said, with the support of my family and coaches I will be forgoing my senior year and entering the 2010 NFL draft,” Clausen said.

Throughout the season Clausen has been included in some of the Heisman talk and may be expected to be chosen in an earlier round of the draft.

The Irish certainly will have some rebuilding to do. They fired coach Charlie Weis last week and now are unexpectedly losing two of their key players to the NFL draft.

Copyright © 2009 – Sports Climax