Unfortunately, someone forgot to tell this to the guys running the draft for each of the NFL teams in the first round -- as Jimmy fell to the 48th pick (second round) to the Carolina Panthers. This cost Clausen more than $40 million in his first NFL contract negotiation.
The best decision Clausen and his handlers made was not to have him sitting in the NFL Draft's "green room" -- like Brady Quinn three-years prior.
Notre Dame fans will recall these same NFL draft experts "spinning" that Clausen ended up in the perfect situation for a rookie QB. The Carolina Panthers offered Jimmy a good offensive line, strong running game a talented wide receiver and the opportunity to play early.
Once again, all of the experts were wrong -- as Carolina's season went BAD FAST. Clausen was forced to play early and he didn't play well. For the season, Clausen threw for 1,558 yards, three TD's and nine interceptions. He completed 52.5% of his passes for a QB rating of 58.4. He started 10 games winning just one -- as the Panthers went 2-14 for the season, securing the #1 pick in next Thursday's NFL Draft.
Now, a year later -- all of the people who made the decision to draft Clausen are gone in Carolina. And, those same NFL Draft experts believe the Panthers may take Auburn's Cam Newton -- the Heisman Trophy winning QB -- with their first overall pick. Can't be easy for Clausen.
Here's a link to some of the more recent stories about what Carolina might do with the #1 pick Thursday -- and it's impact on Clausen:
LINK: ESPN
LINK: CHARLOTTE OBSERVER
LINK: NBC
