NFL Draft Update – Why Jimmy Clausen Fell To Second Round

The biggest name that wasn’t heard during the first round of the NFL Draft was that of Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen. Projected as a first-round pick, and a second-round talent, almost every team that needed a quarterback passed on the guy despite the fact he shows marvelous technical skill and a barns worth of experience in a pro-style offense. His will be the biggest stock to watch in the second round, especially since dropping out of the first-round has seemingly cost him millions of dollars.

Not surprisingly, Sam Bradford was taken first overall by the St. Louis Rams and it’s hard to debate that wasn’t the smartest thing to do. Bradford has surreal accuracy, a tight delivery and is a great leader.

The shocking turn of events on Thursday night was the Denver Broncos electing to take Tim Tebow. Is Tebow really a better quarterback than Clausen?

It’s hard to say at this point. Tebow certainly has the character and intangibles of a winner, but Clausen most definitely has the polished assets that Tebow doesn’t. It’s also noteworthy that Tebow won a Heisman and two BCS Championships, while Clausen was only nominated for a Heisman in 2009. Certainly, everything that Tim Tebow lacks from a technical standpoint, Clausen has in spades.

Something that scouts hate about Clausen is his inability to throw a consistent deep ball. He’s slightly undersized for a quarterback, which is the exact same thing they say about Drew Brees, but Clausen lacks the arm strength of the Super Bowl MVP. Having a canon arm is what makes quarterbacks in the NFL. Clausen is unfortunately less like Brees, and much more reminiscent of a pint-sized Chad Pennington.

The biggest problem for Clausen moving forward is that Colt McCoy of the Texas Longhorns is still lurking about in the second round as well. There’s no team that is praying to land McCoy more than the Cleveland Browns, who took Joe Haden from Florida with the seventh overall pick. It’s a great idea for the Browns to jump at a corner like Haden, but it would be even better for them to grab the quarterback they want with the second pick.

That being said, the Bills could use the 41st pick in the draft to take Clausen after adding C.J. Spiller in the first round. If McCoy goes to Cleveland and Buffalo jumps on one of the many offensive-guards or tackles in the second round, Clausen could very well slip out of the second round as well. No other team in the second round desperately needs to add a quarterback with so much other talent remaining on the board.

I still wonder what would’ve happened for Clausen had he not blown that game against the USC Trojans. At this point, he probably is too.

Get in on the action now – SIGN UP HERE