BY RICH CIMINI DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER When Kellen Clemens got the call from the Jets in the second round, he was taking a nap - only fitting for a player hailed as one of the top sleepers in the NFL draft. Clemens might not have the star power of Matt Leinart and Vince Young or the arm strength of Jay Cutler - the three quarterbacks drafted ahead of him - but the former Oregon standout has enough upside to be a good one, according to three experts. Quarterback-turned-analyst Ron Jaworski, draft guru Gil Brandt and an AFC offensive coach each praised the Jets for taking Clemens with the 49th choice. None of them went so far as to say Clemens will turn out better than Leinart, whom the Jets bypassed with their No. 1 pick, but they agreed Clemens can be a winning quarterback. "He can be the quarterback of the future," ESPN's Jaworski said on his Web site, adding that "it would not surprise me if he's a Tom Brady-type quarterback." Clemens enjoyed a productive career at Oregon - 19 touchdowns, four interceptions and a 64% completion rate last season - but he disappeared from the radar screen after breaking his left ankle last October. He tried to raise his stock in February at the scouting combine, but he still was less than 100% and couldn't perform well. "When I saw him in Indianapolis, I hated the guy," said the AFC coach, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "He couldn't make the throws, he couldn't push off. It was the ankle. When I watched him on film, I loved the guy." The coach, who studied every quarterback in the draft, offered this scouting report on Clemens: "Really good arm. Can make all the throws. Very quick release. Pretty good mobility. He's not a Vince Young type, but he can still get out of trouble and make plays with his feet. He can throw the deep ball and the medium ball. We really liked him." The Jets' scouting report on Clemens said his arm strength was superior to that of Leinart and Young, not quite as strong as Cutler. The AFC coach agreed with the comparison to Leinart, saying, "(Clemens) has a better release, and his arm is stronger than Leinart's. His ball spins better than Leinart's. But I don't know if he spins it better than Vince." The knock on Clemens, the coach said, is that he played exclusively in a shotgun offense last season. But he does have prior experience in a conventional attack. Brandt, the former Cowboys executive who analyzes the draft for NFL.com, rated Clemens the fourth-best quarterback, after The Big Three. "In my evaluation of the guy, I think he has really good mechanics and good velocity on the ball, which is a big thing when you play in a stadium that has a lot of wind like (the Jets) do," Brandt said. "I think it was a good pick. I'd be really surprised if he doesn't end up being a pretty good player for them." Clemens probably won't get his shot until 2007. Chad Pennington, expected to test his surgically repaired throwing shoulder in a June minicamp, will battle Patrick Ramsey for the starting job this season. After that, it's anybody's guess. "I think he's going to be a real good pro," said Jaworski, who dissected tape of every quarterback. "If you had mentioned Tom Brady a few years ago, people would have said, 'Who?' Well, I mention Kellen Clemens because I think he has that type of ability and will surprise people in the NFL." Originally published on May 2, 2006 http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/story/413932p-349944c.html
Good article. One thing that they didn't talk about but I personally like his ability to absorb new schemes and run them successfully. He had pretty good numbers despite having different schemes implemented each season. As long as he adjusts to the speed of the game I think he can be our qb for the future.
LOL yeah its Mike Tyson's Punchout. Def'n old school and I wouldn't be surprised if 3/4 the folks on the board have never played it.
I went two rounds with him and that was it. Clemens is gonna be a good one. He moves well and makes very accurate throws on the move. He makes some really good throws across his body, and we're not talking about lobs. He's got an arm, is smart, and wants to win. Everything else, he can be coached on. Good pick and good value.
All I got to say is up up down down left right left right ba ONly old school heads would know what that is
i kicked the shit outta Tyson...after i learned how to beat him of course...he crushed me the first 152 times...now his ass is mine!!
I feel old school with all this trivia I thought was common knoweldge. I hated Contra, without that code I never would of played. It was the first game I ever played that was actually more fun with a friend because you could help eachother throughout the game. And of course that's Tyson, that's is the scene right before you get your code. I still remember when that game first came out and I played it religiously, finally beating Macho Man and getting to Tyson. My first time against Tyson I had no idea what to do, just stood there, and all of sudden Tyson flashes and next thing I know uppercuts my ass onto the floor. I stll remember being on the ground and Mario counting and my energy meter still doppping. Man could he uppercut........
