Nate Clements You've Got to Be Kidding Me!

Former Buffalo Bills corner back Nate Clements just became the highest paid defensive player in the league. Last week he signed an 8 year 80 million dollar contract . Thats roughly ten million dollars a year. It's also a classic case of a team with too much cap space wasting it on one player.

Nate Clements isn't Champ Bailey or Ty Law, he just got lucky enough to be the best free agent corner in a very weak free agent market this year. He is a Pro-Bowl corner back but he is just not on the elite level that other corners in the NFL are. Last season he only had three interceptions and the year before that only two.

He's young and he doesn't miss games, those are pluses, he is a very good corner back, but he is in no way worthy of being the highest paid defensive player in the league. The 49ers really overpaid for this guy, and they are going to suffer for it in the future at other positions. It is unbelievable that this man is not even the best corner back in this league, yet he is now the highest paid defensive player ever. It makes me wonder if football is headed in the direction that baseball is.

The 49ers obviously were in need of a corner back, so instead of spending 80 million dollars on an overrated one, why didn't they just add one through the draft. Or they could have at least taken the lesser option in free agency. The 49ers management allowed themselves to be completely robbed by this man. They could have used that money to fill other holes with other players on that team. He is not worth ten million a year. He is not going to play like it either. Investing that much in a single player, especially at a position like corner back is simply foolish.

It looks like the 49ers are headed to salary cap hell once again, it should be interesting to see what their moves in the coming months and in the next few years will be. As well as how Clements preforms since he is going to be under an enormous amount of pressure to fulfill that huge contract. I'd say about ten interceptions and three or four interception returns for touchdowns should make a case, but he's not going to come close to those numbers at all.

One thing is for sure though, all eyes are going to be on the leagues new highest paid defensive player, Nate Clements the world is watching you.

Sources:
http://mlb.aolsportsblog.com/2007/03/02/49ers-sign-ex-bills-cornerback-nate-clements/
http://www.nfl.com/players/playerpage/235204