Clements needs to make more plays to earn his worth

By Anthony Bialy  |   Tuesday, February 26, 2008  |  Comments( 16 )

San Francisco 49ers
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Eighty million dollars buys an improvement from 26th to 22nd. That's what San Francisco got for its investment in cornerback Nate Clements: The 49ers jumped from being bad in pass defense all the way to somewhat closer to mediocre. Even if it's true that his final season of his record-smashing deal has been voided, leading to both a smaller per year and grand total, Clements didn't do enough to justify the barely less enormous contract.

It's not entirely fair to say that the 49ers pass defense was only enhanced a little bit by Clements' arrival. The truth is that the unit actually got worse. Despite the modest jump in rankings, San Francisco conceded more aerial yards than it did during the last year of the B.C. era, Before Clements: The Niners surrendered 227.7 passing yards per game in 2007 compared to an average of 223.2 yards in 2006.

It only appears that they improved when measured against the bottom two-thirds of the league, which collectively got worse. That allowed the Niners to move up the rankings even as they gave up slightly more ground through the air.

Saying Clements is overpaid is as obvious as announcing that Lindsay Lohan can't act, but it's understandable that teams are willing to pay over what would be objective market value for free agents: If a general manager can add a talented player without having to surrender players or picks in return, it's easier to justify spending more than one would in a vacuum. But, regardless of how the team and player ended up agreeing on a pact as astronomical as this one, it's going to overshadow both until the corner's play makes everyone forget the money.

And, while it might not seem fair to stick the blame for everything on a single member of the secondary, the criticism is justified in light of the responsibility bestowed on him when he chose to cross time zones. That's the consequence of pursuing and receiving this much compensation.

Clements' flashy style has always revolved around gambling: he's a bold player who's willing to make a break on the ball instead of attempting a simple breakup. It sometimes leads to glamorous results, but it also means at worst occasionally getting burned and at best a lack of fundamentally sound results. Tied for 19th in the league last season for passes defensed with a very respectable but not staggering total of 18, he needs to upgrade his execution of the position's basics.

The payoff wasn't worth the risk, either. The team has the right to expect more than the four interceptions Clements managed last season, even though, as a player with 27 over his seven seasons, that's almost exactly his average. Steady production from year to year won't cut it: The 49ers are entitled to expect him to change the tempo and sometimes outcomes of games on his own, including by generating more turnovers than he typically has in the past.

Clements needs to take several steps up if he wants to live up to his "Playmaker" nickname; of course, the fact that he bestowed that title upon himself should have made everyone suspicious from the start. Even setting aside the fishy circumstances of the arrogant moniker, Clements needs to dominate, and not just in a "his stats were down because offenses avoided him" manner.

Looming contract aside, San Francisco needs superhuman individual performances from the most prominent names on the roster if the team plans to reverse its recent history. It starts with stars like Clements playing better than simply pretty well.
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