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where is jimmy?

Yaboychris28

By Yaboychris28,
in Carolina Panthers

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Panther59 Newbie

Panther59

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http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2010/04/jimmy-clausen-couldnt-be-happier-after-being-selected-by-carolina-panthers-in-nfl-draft/1

Jimmy Clausen couldn't be happier after being selected by Carolina Panthers in NFL draft

Finally selected with the 48th pick in the draft by the Carolina Panthers, Jimmy Clausen said Friday night he's thrilled with his landing spot in the NFL.

"I couldn't have gone to a better place than Carolina," Clausen said in an interview on ESPN.

Clausen was projected to go as high as the top 10 picks and was seen as the second-best QB in the draft class. But he experienced a stunning slide down the draft board, finally ending when the QB-needy Panthers made their first pick of the three-day draft.

"It's a great situation for me," Clausen said. "I just talked to the coach and he said it's pretty much the same verbage (as the offense he played in at Notre Dame)."

The Panthers cut QB Jake Delhomme after last season and enter next season with unproven Matt Moore atop the depth chart. Clausen could compete with Moore for snaps right away.

Clausen said his family was very supportive during his unexpected trip down the draft board

"Obviously I wanted to go as early as I could," he said, "but this is a great situation for me."

-- Sean Leahy

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http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/panthers/2010-04-23-jimmy-clausen-draft_N.htm

Panthers take Jimmy Clausen at 48; QB now out for vindication

By Jim Corbett, USA TODAY- NEW YORK — Jimmy Clausen's tumble finally ended after 48 selections \when the Carolina Panthers stopped the former Notre Dame quarterback's painful freefall with their first pick of the three-day NFL draft Friday night.

The long wait may well prove worth it for Clausen considering the 2010 draft's drama guy landed in the uncrowded pocket of the quarterback-needy Panthers.

Clausen was playing pool with his brothers and some buddies at a hotel in Palm Springs, Calif., where he was staying with family members to support his grandfather following the recent death of his wife.

Suddenly, Clausen's brother Rick started screaming and handed Clausen the phone.

It was Panthers coach John Fox telling Clausen how excited he was to land him after failing to trade up into the first round with the New Orleans Saints, who owned the final pick Thursday night.

"Obviously, I wanted to be picked as high as I could," Clausen said. "But at the end of the day, everything happens for a reason. I couldn't be more happy to be a part of the Panthers organization.

"Coach Fox was really excited. He told me they were trying to get up to the 32nd pick, but it didn't work out. He's really excited to have me on the team. I told him I can't wait to get there and start to work and help the team and the organization do what I can to help them win."

After such a long wait, Clausen couldn't have asked for a better opportunity. Clausen will likely have a chance to compete with undistinguished incumbent Matt Moore, who went 4-1 with eight touchdown passes and two interceptions after replacing the ineffective Jake Delhomme, who was released last month and landed in Cleveland.

Moore has a grand total of 11 touchdown passes and seven interceptions in his eight-game starting resume.

"My goal is to try to be the starter from day one," Clausen said. "Whatever the coaches want me to do, I'm going to do it to the best of my ability. At the end of the day, if I'm good enough to play, then, I'll play. If not, I'll do everything I can to help the team win."

It may be only a matter of time before Clausen gives the Panthers the best chance to win.

"Clausen's a franchise quarterback," said NFL Network analyst Bucky Brooks, a former scout. "I think they'd want to take their time and groom him. But if Matt Moore falters, he'll get a chance.

"(Panthers offensive coordinator) Jeff Davidson runs the same offense (former Irish coach) Charlie Weis did at Notre Dame. And Charlie Weis and (Panthers coach) John Fox are really good friends. In fact, Foxie wanted to hire Charlie as his offensive coordinator. So I'm sure Charlie blessed the pick."

So Clausen's humbling freefall amid criticism of his personality and leadership style could be a win-win for the quarterback and the Panthers.

"It's frustrating sometimes," Clausen said of his critics. "It's definitely going to be in the back of my mind every single time I step on the field and every time I'm working out and watching film to make me that much better."

Said Brooks, "Clausen's going to come in there very ticked off and motivated with a chip on his shoulder."

Why the agonizing fall for the signal caller projected as the second-best in the 2010 draft?

Right or wrong, the perception of a cocky, me-first attitude haunted Clausen and sent him plummeting.

The memory of Clausen showing up at the College Football Hall of Fame in a stretch limousine to announce his commitment to Notre Dame apparently dogged Clausen — all the way to the draft.

That ill-advised decision combined with his bold statement saying he came to Notre Dame "to win national championships and Heisman Trophies" stuck to the kid from Southern California like gum to a shoe. Especially when Notre Dame went 16-21 during the Clausen era that ended with a disappointing, 6-6 finish in 2009.

"The character stuff hurt him more than people anticipated," NFL Network analyst Mike Mayock said.

"He has the physical skill set to be a top-10 pick in the draft, similar to Mark Sanchez last year. The question is, what kind of kid is Clausen? If you buy into him, work ethic, toughness and leadership, there's no reason not to take him. He's every bit as talented as Sanchez."

Could he be haunted as well by the ghosts of underwhelming Notre Dame quarterbacks past such as Rick Mirer, Ron Powlus and Brady Quinn, now in a Denver Broncos quarterback competition with The Golden Calf of Bristol and Kyle Orton?

Clausen completed 68% of his passes last season with 28 touchdowns and just four interceptions when he played through two torn toe tendons.

"Jimmy's a great leader," said Clausen's former Irish receiver Golden Tate. "He's really consistent. Everyday he showed up to work. Sick, hurt, we got the same Jimmy.

"He did a great job of keeping the team together. Obviously, we wish we would have won more games. But you can't blame it all on the quarterback.

It might have been a $30-million fall for the quarterback expected to go after the St. Louis Rams selected former Oklahoma star Sam Bradford with the first overall pick and before former Florida star The Golden Calf of Bristol, who went 25th to Denver.

But the draft is often all about where a player goes, not when.

"I think I'm a great leader and teammate," Clausen said. "You ask all the guys on the team and they love hanging out with me and being around me and my family. I don't know everything that was said. But it's over now and I'm a Carolina Panther.

"I couldn't be more happy and excited than I am right now."

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