NFL Power Rankings: Jimmy Clausen and the 25 Most Worthless Players in the NFL
This is a harsh piece by design. The NFL has a lot of players who come in with great promise and just end up being a waste of space on the field.
Some of them redeem themselves, others bust out, while a few just chug along, year after year, playing mediocre ball.
The players here just seemed to be going through the motions in 2010, or have identified themselves as part of the latter group of mediocre players. This list is by no means comprehensive and I probably could put a dozen Cleveland Browns and Arizona Cardinals players on here without batting an eye.
But we will try and spread the snark around and have some fun while the lockout continues.
25. Chris Clemons
1 of 25
The most useless person on the Miami Dolphins in 2011 will be offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. You heard it here first, and good luck, Dolphins fans.
In 2010, Chris Clemons did not do his team any favors. Clemons only had one pick the entire season and was exploited by opposing quarterbacks on a regular basis.
While many of the Dolphins' problems can be attributed to injuries and other variables, Clemons is 25 years old and should be making plays, but he is not.
24. Levi Brown
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This was the best picture I could find of Levi Brown in the 2010 season. A picture of Brown getting schooled by Julius Peppers in a preseason game.
The Cardinals did not have many options at quarterback, but you can not expect anybody to have a chance to succeed when a guy like Brown is not blocking on the field.
Brown needs to find something else to do, because playing left tackle is not his strong suit.
23. Clark Haggans
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Then there is the Cardinals defense.
Clark Haggans produced 47 combined tackles and five sacks for the 2010 season.
At age 34, it just may be time for Haggans to hang it up.
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22. Eugene Amano
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Running back Chris Johnson did not achieve his goal of running for more than 2,000 yards in the 2010 season.
Eugene Amano is one of the reasons. To achieve his goal, Johnson needed holes to run through, holes Amano and left guard Leroy Harris seemed incapable of opening.
Jeff Fisher was right to move on. The Titans are going to have to rebuild from the ground up, and owner Bud Adams does not want to admit that.
21. Flozell Adams
5 of 25
Notice the Flozell Adams in his natural habitat.
The Flozell Adams does not engage defenders because that requires speed. The Flozell Adams is good at occupying space on an offensive line and wearing a jersey.
Other than that, our top naturalists have yet to find a use for the Flozell Adams, whose age is undetermined but believed to be at least 300 years old.
20. Eugene Wilson
6 of 25
In 14 games, Wilson had only 56 tackles—so good job being where the ball is, Eugene—and he had zero interceptions and zero forced fumbles.
Again, good job finding the play.
There is no reason for the Texans to keep Wilson one more year. A guy off the street could put up these numbers.
19. John Sullivan
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There is John Sullivan helping Brett Favre up off the turf. If Sullivan had done a little better job blocking, this picture never would have been taken.
The Vikings offensive line was one of the best in the league a few years ago. That was not the case in 2010 and Sullivan's poor anchoring was a big part of that equation.
18. Eric Wright
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Eric Wright has been tendered by the Cleveland Browns, but most fans can not understand why.
Wright got torched on several plays in a game versus the Cincinnati Bengals early in the season and he never recovered. The game was so bad for Wright, it must have just gotten into his head, because teams kept challenging Wright and they kept scoring because of it.
Wright ended the season on the injured reserve list and Browns fans thought the team better for it.
17. Frank Omiyale
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The Jay Cutler debate. The 3,000 sacks surrendered during the season.
Should I go on?
The Bears may as well have put a high school kid at left tackle last year. He could not have done any worse than Frank Omiyale.
16. Golden Tate
10 of 25
The Seahawks drafted Golden Tate in the second round, expecting to get an impact player right out of the gate.
But the only thing Tate impacted was Notre Dame's record of potential draft busts in the last five years.
Tate's stats: 21 catches for 227 yards.
15. William Moore
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That is William Moore hiding his face in a towel. Not only was Moore not good and one of the weaker parts of the Falcons in the regular season, he got embarrassed in the playoff loss to Green Bay.
He may as well have not even showed up.
14. Rey Maualuga
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Rey Maualuga came to the Bengals with great anticipation in 2009. Well-founded character issues dropped him out of the first round in the draft last year and his rookie season was average.
His sophomore season was average at best, and defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer already has called Maualuga out for his pedestrian play.
Considering the Bengals finished 4-12 and Maualuga only had one sack, this criticism is well-earned.
13. John St. Clair
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You want to know why three Browns quarterbacks went down with the same high ankle sprain injury in one season?
John St. Clair is one of the main reasons. St. Clair, along with Floyd "Pork Chop" Womack, held down the right side of the offensive line for Cleveland.
And then the ball was snapped and what little movement the two were capable of mostly involved wild flailing at defenders who already had passed them by.
The right side of the Browns offensive line was a sieve for the last two years; former head coach Eric Mangini seemed to be proud because they were "his guys."
There is no reason St. Clair or Womack should suit up for any team in 2011.
12. Tim Crowder
14 of 25
One way the Buccaneers can make the playoffs in 2011 is to part ways with defensive end Tim Crowder.
It is hard to believe they could not replace his three whole sacks and 31 tackles. While Crowder only had nine starts, he was active for all 16 games.
Do something!!
11. Gary Gibson
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Gary Gibson recorded 18 tackles and zero sacks in 2010 as a defensive tackle.
This was his fifth season and his best statistically.
Yes, you read that right.
10. Matt Dodge
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When looking through the Giants roster for candidates for this list, I happened upon the name "Matt Dodge."
I think the picture tells you everything you need to know.
Giants fans, the floor is yours.
9. Darrius Heyward-Bey
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Darrius Heyward-Bey is who most fans thought he would be. In two seasons, Heyward-Bey's stats are 35 catches for 490 yards with two touchdowns.
Al Davis loved him, though, and that is all that matters to Al Davis.
However, if Davis bailed on JaMarcus Russell after three seasons, that means Heyward-Bey has one more season to prove himself.
He needs to start producing in a big way.
8. Daniel Muir
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Dan Muir is a starting defensive tackle for a team that made the playoffs in 2010.
His stats are 38 tackles and zero sacks for 2010. So Muir was not catching runners and he was not getting to the quarterback.
If anyone can find a use for Muir, please contact the Indianapolis Colts at 1-800-HELP US!
7. Charlie Johnson
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When a quarterback gets harrassed and beat up on a regular basis, you look to his blindside for a reason.
Enter Charlie Johnson, possibly one of the worst free-agent acquisitions in the history of football.
Johnson's poor play is a big reason why the Colts regressed in 2010. Manning spent far too much time rushing his throws and eating turf.
6. Nate Clements
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Can you say, "Overpriced?"
Nate Clements is due $7.25 million in 2011 and $9 million in 2012. Clements had three picks in 2010.
You do the math.
5. Beanie Wells
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Beanie Wells was supposed to be the workhorse running back for the Arizona Cardinals when they drafted him in 2009.
After two years, Wells has been a huge disappointment, running for only 1,190 yards on 292 carries in that span, scoring only nine touchdowns.
This is the third Cardinal on this list. I warned you this would happen.
4. Mike Jenkins
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There is a matter of debate on whether Mike Jenkins is lazy, dumb, in over his head, or just plain awful.
Whatever he is, it boils down to useless on the field, forcing the Cowboys to use a draft pick on a position they should not have had to fill for years.
Jenkins' play last year was borderline criminal in its awfulness. At times it seemed like he just did not care what was going around him as long as the check cleared.
3. Aaron Maybin
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Is Aaron Maybin still on the Bills roster?
He is?
Okay, I think that about says it all.
I was going to put C.J. Spiller here until I remembered Maybin still occupied a roster spot. It is easy to forget he is there. Through two years Maybin has 24 whole tackles and a whopping zero sacks.
You can not buy that level of putrid play–oh wait, yes you can.
2. Jimmy Clausen
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"Captain Attitude" himself. Jimmy Clausen told everyone who would listen (and some who would not) that he was the best. All of his pre-draft interviews last year were heavy in ego and a sense of entitlement, like he could not believe he had not already been crowned the best quarterback to ever play the game.
Granted the Panthers were a terrible team last year and owner Jerry Richardson decided cheap was the way to go in all things while doing nothing to help a lame duck coach.
That being said, Clausen's college record did not match the success of Tim Tebow or Colt McCoy. At the end of the 2010 season, both quarterbacks had shown much more ability to succeed in the NFL in limited appearances than Clausen did with 13 games.
Clausen's body language was terrible, his footwork was awful, he did not adjust well to the pace of the pro game and he made terrible decisions.
His final stat line? Three touchdowns, nine picks and a 58.4 QB rating.
Clausen may end up getting another chance in 2011, but the Panthers may just cut their losses and move on.
How could you blame them?
1. Albert Haynesworth
25 of 25
At least Jimmy Clausen tried to play. The same can not be said for Albert Haynesworth. This waste of oxygen took the money and ran.
If little miss perfect can not have things exactly the way he wants them, then he takes his ball and goes home.
I'll cede the floor to Redskins fans. Vent away on this one.
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