Clarett takes the high-risk, high-reward road again

[PatsWin2002]

http://www.ohio.com/mld/beaconjourna...e/12259182.htm

Posted on Fri, Jul. 29, 2005
Clarett takes the high-risk, high-reward road again

EDDIE PELLS
Associated Press

DENVER - Given that many folks thought he wouldn't get drafted at all, Maurice Clarett might have felt like he won the lottery when the Denver Broncos chose him in the third round.

Then, what did Clarett do?

He passed on the guaranteed $400,000 signing bonus he could have taken, instead choosing an incentive-filled deal that could earn him first-round money ... or leave him broke.

It was the kind of move that fits right in with the rookie tailback's pattern of high-risk, high-reward decisions - leaving Ohio State, suing the NFL, quitting in the middle of the league's scouting combine.

This latest gambit has sparked a debate between those who think he did a good thing - not asking for anything up front, instead seeking to earn every penny - and those who think he was foolish because if he gets hurt, or cut, or banished to the practice squad before the season begins, he will have no cash to show for his efforts.

"I don't want to get into the contract thing with the public," Clarett said Friday, after his first practice at training camp. "It was just the best situation for me and the Broncos and the coaches. It's just what my agent sat down and did."

Clarett's agent, Steve Feldman, did not return messages left at his office by The Associated Press. In an interview with the Denver Post, Feldman said he and Clarett didn't view the contract as a risk.

"This is an out-of-the-box deal, but we think it works well for Maurice and the Broncos," Feldman said.

It could net Clarett up to $7 million over the life of the four-year deal if he reaches all the goals and triggers a number of escalator clauses written into the contract.

As it stands now, though, he has nothing. He is scheduled to earn the rookie minimum $230,000, but that's only if he makes the regular-season roster.

Since contracts in the NFL are not guaranteed, it makes signing bonuses like the one Clarett passed on that much more important. Instead of what would have been about a $410,000 signing bonus, Clarett's contract calls for him to make that money in workout bonuses that would be spread over the final three years of his contract.

He'll earn that money, of course, only if he's on the roster.

[PatsWin2002]

Clarett said the decision to sign a unique contract had nothing to do with him trying to prove himself, a key issue for a player who has been through so much turmoil, and who hasn't played a down since the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 3, 2003.

"The contract is something else," Clarett said. "I think I just need to come out here day-to-day and work to try to improve the team. I believe that if I come out and do everything I am supposed to do, stay healthy and keep competing, I will be all right and we can all win games."

Clarett reported to camp at 233 pounds, about three pounds above where the team wanted him, but a good 15 to 20 pounds lighter than what he weighed during his disastrous workout at the NFL scouting combine in February.

He worked out with the reserves through most of the first practice, which is where he's expected to end up this season if he makes the roster.

Asked how Clarett looked in his first practice, coach Mike Shanahan spoke in generalities.

"You know, we've had these guys since the middle of May, so all the rookies have been given the chance to digest our system," Shanahan said. "But this is the first time they get to do it full speed and do it in a setting where we are actually at camp."

Clarett said some things have come easier than others since he began working out with the Broncos in May. Working on blocking schemes at the pro level is difficult. Running the ball and finding holes is easier.

He said at the minicamps, he was thinking more about himself than the team.

Now, though?

"I came in with a different attitude," he said. "I think it was a little bit selfish at first, but once you get out here with the team and coaches, you realize that it is about something a lot bigger than you."

And while speaking the party line about "team" certainly will serve Clarett well with his teammates, nobody needs to succeed for personal reasons more than him.

"We all know that everyone has to get their reps and there are five running backs," he said. "You figure out that you may get one rep all practice, so you better do your best in that rep and just continue to work on it on and off the field."

[crazyhorse]

He's gonna be a goodun'.

[wabbit]

For what it's worth, you might find it interesting that most...if not all players couldn't give a damn about another player UNLESS that player affects him in some way.

I remember an interview with Rod Smith during some charity event after the draft wherein someone asked him if he felt about the team drafting Maurice Clarett.

Smith thought about it a second or two, finally saying; 'Man, everyone is trying to hang onto their own job...no-one has any time to worry about Maurice Clarett'...by the way...who is Maurice Clarett' (tongue in cheek)

He'll get some respect for the kind of contract he signed, but there will be a good number of detractors too, only they won't be too vocal in public.

They work as a team in a game, obviously, but when it comes to personal issues...in most cases...it's every man for himself

[Clockwork Orange]

Originally Posted by crazyhorse

He's gonna be a goodun'.

Worst case scenario he ends up riding the pine and making no money.

As opposed to Larry Johnson who rides the pine and makes 1st round money.