Speaker 1: Welcome to another edition of the Official Jets podcast, the
Speaker 1: Draft Pick Profile series presented by Verizon. Continuing on here,
Speaker 1: Bethan Greenberg e A breaking down jets third and final
Speaker 1: fourth round pick, Charlotte's Cameron Clark and offensive lineman play
Speaker 1: Tackle like College. You're gonna hear from Joe Douglas and
Speaker 1: his staff in this podcast on what they like about Clark,
Speaker 1: why he's a good fit for the Jets. You're also
Speaker 1: gonna hear from somebody that covered Cam Clark at Charlotte.
Speaker 1: That's David Scott of the Charlotte Observer. But e A.
Speaker 1: Cam Clark was the third and final pick that the
Speaker 1: Jets had in the fourth round. Remember they had one
Speaker 1: twenty one, twenty nine, and Joe Douglas, true to his word,
Speaker 1: alects to add to the offensive line yet again. Yeah,
Speaker 1: so we go back to free agency and we think
Speaker 1: about Connor mcgover and Greg Van Roten, of course, George
Speaker 1: Fant at the tackle position, and Joe Douglass first all
Speaker 1: verall draft pick as general manager of the New York Jets.
Speaker 1: Of course, McKay Beckton number eleven overall selection in the draft.
Speaker 1: And then he continues to add to the offensive line
Speaker 1: in the fourth round with an interesting player in Cameron Clark.
Speaker 1: Because Clark is a guy who played tackle at the
Speaker 1: collegiate level. A lot of people who you have heard
Speaker 1: speak about him think that actually down the line, maybe
Speaker 1: he projects more on the interior. But again, it kind
Speaker 1: of fits the criteria of a Joe Douglas type player
Speaker 1: is he's got a mean streak, he plays nasty, uh,
Speaker 1: and he has position flexibility. So Joe Douglas never was
Speaker 1: rested on his laurels with that offensive line and he continued, uh,
Speaker 1: he continued to work on it here on draft weekend
Speaker 1: with the addition to Clark and Cam Clark talking about
Speaker 1: fitting the bill of the criteria of what Joe Douglas
Speaker 1: wants two times captain for Charlotte, So clearly another guy
Speaker 1: that adds to this fabric of the culture that Joe
Speaker 1: Douglas is trying to establish here. And let's hear from
Speaker 1: Joe doug Ion his staff on what they like about
Speaker 1: Cam Clark. Yeah, big Cam brings mentality, toughness, leadership. When
Speaker 1: we talk about grit, when we talk about guys that's
Speaker 1: strained to finish every play, that's big Camp. One of
Speaker 1: our scouts that he was. He was a high school
Speaker 1: oh American at center. So a guy you're talking about
Speaker 1: versatility flexibility when we feel like he's a guy that
Speaker 1: could give us that kind of flexibility moving forward and
Speaker 1: the right type of person and competitor as well. So
Speaker 1: we see him as being able to have the versatility
Speaker 1: of play both tackle positions in terms of a swing role.
Speaker 1: And then he's also shown traits for a guard in
Speaker 1: terms of his physicality and finish that projects inside. He's
Speaker 1: got a good size, he's got a good ability to
Speaker 1: play balanced and stay balanced within a play that will
Speaker 1: help inside if he needs to move inside the guard
Speaker 1: for us. So he's showed the traits to be able
Speaker 1: to handle both guard and tackle for us. Yeah, I
Speaker 1: think with Cam. You know, our scouts who saw him
Speaker 1: in the fall had solid grades on him. And then
Speaker 1: he was another player that was at the East West
Speaker 1: Shrine game and we interviewed him a number of times.
Speaker 1: But I think what we really like about him the
Speaker 1: most is the fact that he's versatile. Even though he's
Speaker 1: played left tackle in college, he's lined up as a
Speaker 1: right tackle. He even played offensive center in high school,
Speaker 1: so he may give us three position flexibility in terms
Speaker 1: of center, guard, and tackle, with the upside to perhaps
Speaker 1: becoming a starter. One of his college coaches, you know,
Speaker 1: they had a lot of different staffs there, and especially
Speaker 1: in that offensive line room at Charlotte, but one of
Speaker 1: his former coaches was on our staff with the Arizona
Speaker 1: hot Shots last year when I was part of the
Speaker 1: Alliance of American Football, and he really thought the world
Speaker 1: of Cam Clark in terms of his potential in the NFL.
Speaker 1: And again, another player that adds to the sort of
Speaker 1: the fabric of our team. There will obviously obviously be
Speaker 1: an adjustment in terms of the height, weight and speed
Speaker 1: of some of the guys that he will be going against.
Speaker 1: But you know, he played against Clemson in his career,
Speaker 1: He played against Tennessee in his career, so there were
Speaker 1: glimpses of him going against higher level competition and he
Speaker 1: was clearly a player that belonged at another level in
Speaker 1: terms of his college career. I mean that that's the thing.
Speaker 1: You know, we watched these games on Sunday nights and
Speaker 1: Monday nights Oftentimes, when the guys give the starting lineup
Speaker 1: and they announced the school that they're from, there are
Speaker 1: a lot of players from places like Charlotte in southern
Speaker 1: Mississippi and Grand Valley State and places that you know
Speaker 1: typically aren't football factories. And I think one of the
Speaker 1: real benefits have taken a player like a Cam Clark
Speaker 1: or even a James Morgan from f i U is
Speaker 1: the fact that you know they figured out how to
Speaker 1: maximize their potential at that level in regards to nutrition,
Speaker 1: strengthen can aiually working on the field without having every
Speaker 1: bell and whistle that you'll find at some of the
Speaker 1: major schools that are essentially football factory. So I love
Speaker 1: that dynamic of some of these players and that they've
Speaker 1: had to figure some of this stuff out on their
Speaker 1: own without having everything laid out for him. Over the
Speaker 1: last three or four years, lots of great stuff from
Speaker 1: Joe Douglas, Rex Hogan and Phil Savage is always e
Speaker 1: when you look at Cam Clark's career at Charlotte, I
Speaker 1: mean something that stands out to me. How often do
Speaker 1: you see a guy that plays on the old line
Speaker 1: ends up being the offensive team m v P. How often,
Speaker 1: I'd say, I've never heard of that before ever on
Speaker 1: the collegiate level. That jumps out at everybody when you're
Speaker 1: going through somebody's bio, and in two thousand seventeen he's
Speaker 1: the offensive team on PP So that kind of gives
Speaker 1: you an indication of how highly regarded he was on campus.
Speaker 1: And then in two thousand eighteen and two thousand nineteen,
Speaker 1: like you said, a team captain, and he was a
Speaker 1: left tackle last couple of seasons. What started twelve games
Speaker 1: at left tackle in two thousand and eighteen and a
Speaker 1: thirteen more at left tackle. All Conference USA First Team Performer,
Speaker 1: last year Intangibles with the captain accolaides one of the
Speaker 1: most decorated players ever to play at Charlotte. So cam
Speaker 1: Clark is a four year starter at left tackle. And
Speaker 1: we heard Joe Douglas and Phil Savage talk about this
Speaker 1: a little bit, but in high school, cam Clark actually
Speaker 1: played center as well in addition to left tackles, so
Speaker 1: while in college he only played left tackle. It's been
Speaker 1: a little while since cam Clark has played anywhere else
Speaker 1: except that position. But when you talk about position versatility
Speaker 1: at the next level, the fact that cam Clark has
Speaker 1: the first satility to play either tackle position and set
Speaker 1: and potentially either guard. I mean Phil Savage said this
Speaker 1: when we heard him say he offers for position versatility
Speaker 1: for the Jets. I think that's very rare, and to
Speaker 1: take a fire on a guy like this in the
Speaker 1: fourth round, I think it makes a whole lot of
Speaker 1: sense for the Jets. Yeah, Clark played forty nine games
Speaker 1: at Charlotte. The last thirty one were consecutive starts at
Speaker 1: left tackle to end his college career. And you mentioned
Speaker 1: the position flexibility. Uh, smaller school Charlotte, But a lot
Speaker 1: of people thought he stepped up and was able to
Speaker 1: play well when Charlotte matched up with Cleanson one side
Speaker 1: of the fair fifty two to ten. But scouts are
Speaker 1: looking at the individual prospects and I think he jumped
Speaker 1: on people's radar the way he played there. So he's
Speaker 1: a long guy, he has more ability to put on
Speaker 1: some more weight. At say, last year he's playing under
Speaker 1: three pounds. I know what the combine he was, what
Speaker 1: three oh seven or three oh eight, But he has
Speaker 1: more wait possibly to put on that frame, especially if
Speaker 1: you're gonna move him inside the guard position. And again,
Speaker 1: he's walking into a good situation because Cam Clark walks
Speaker 1: into a situation where he doesn't have to be a starter,
Speaker 1: right away, but Greens, if you draft somebody in the
Speaker 1: fourth round, there's no doubt about it. The Jets ultimately
Speaker 1: view this guy as a starter down the line. So
Speaker 1: let me just read some of his measurables here. When
Speaker 1: you talk about hand size and you talk about wingspan, well,
Speaker 1: let me just compare this to McKay Beckton. McKay Beckton
Speaker 1: has ten and three quarters hands along with a eighty
Speaker 1: three and a quarter inch wingspan. And then you think
Speaker 1: about a guy like Cameron Clark. His hands are myths. Okay,
Speaker 1: they're eleven inch hands, which is bigger than McKay act
Speaker 1: and and his wingspan is eighty two and three quarters long.
Speaker 1: So he might not be the six seven three d
Speaker 1: sixty four pound monster that McKay Beckton is, But Cam
Speaker 1: Clark offers a lot of good measurables that stand up
Speaker 1: to a pro tackle or potentially a pro guard in
Speaker 1: the NFL long arms tough. One thing that you're gonna
Speaker 1: watch out for early in his career is to see
Speaker 1: if he is on the edge and he's playing the
Speaker 1: tackle position, is how does he deal with the speed
Speaker 1: of the edge rushers in the National Football League And
Speaker 1: how is he going to adapt in terms of his feet,
Speaker 1: those are things that Cam Clark is going to be
Speaker 1: working on early on in his career. But in terms
Speaker 1: of upper body strength, people really like where he's at.
Speaker 1: And also he's considered a prospect who's pretty polished. He's
Speaker 1: a guy who understands the way defend is how they're
Speaker 1: trying to attack. When you're talking about Cam Clark who
Speaker 1: trained with McKay Beckton in the off season in Dallas,
Speaker 1: and those two kinds of fed off each other, I
Speaker 1: think that's just a great backstory because little did those
Speaker 1: guys know that they would be joining the same team
Speaker 1: just weeks or months later. For more on Clark, let's
Speaker 1: hear from Olivia land Is, who caught up with David Scott,
Speaker 1: who covers Charlotte for the Charlotte Observer. David, the New
Speaker 1: York Jets drafted offensive lineman Cameron Clark in the fourth
Speaker 1: round of the NFL Draft. You have covered him for
Speaker 1: a while now. He's only one of two players out
Speaker 1: of Charlotte that was drafted this season. What makes him
Speaker 1: so special, Well, Olivia, he's been a guy who's been
Speaker 1: with the program obviously for five years, was with the
Speaker 1: program for five years and and really progressed UM as
Speaker 1: as his career one a law kind of like the
Speaker 1: program did. Charlotte's only had a football team for seven years,
Speaker 1: so he was one of the first couple of recruiting
Speaker 1: classes at the school even had so when he came in,
Speaker 1: he was he was more of a FCS kind of
Speaker 1: prospect rather than an FBS guy UM and so he
Speaker 1: made a whole lot of progress going going through his career,
Speaker 1: as did the program, which had their first winning season
Speaker 1: in school history last year and went to a bowl
Speaker 1: game for the first year. So he kind of mirrored
Speaker 1: what's been happening at Charlotte. UM took great leaps his
Speaker 1: senior year and new coaching staff, new offensive coordinator, UM,
Speaker 1: offensive line coach who was the same guy UM, and
Speaker 1: he really UM managed to h to bloom under that.
Speaker 1: Speaking of development, this was a team and an offense
Speaker 1: that was ranked his conference USA's top offense in twenty nineteen.
Speaker 1: How did Cameron Clark contribute to that? Well, he the
Speaker 1: the the offense changed when Will Healey, the new coach,
Speaker 1: came in. Obviously, UM they ran more of a spread
Speaker 1: type of offense UM shotgun UM formations. Most of the time,
Speaker 1: so he had to be really They had mobile quarterback
Speaker 1: name of kid named Chris Reynolds who who could really
Speaker 1: move around in the pocket and make things happen with
Speaker 1: his arm and his legs. So the offensive line had
Speaker 1: to um be mobile and be able to move around,
Speaker 1: and Cam was able to do that as as a tackle.
Speaker 1: Um And I think that's one thing that will probably
Speaker 1: help him in in the NFL if they move him
Speaker 1: to guard like they say they might because of his size.
Speaker 1: He's got the food work and has the ability and
Speaker 1: the agility to move around. Um And, I think that's
Speaker 1: going to help him. But yeah, Charlotte's. Charlotte's offense was
Speaker 1: kind of a spread um um offense with the quarterback
Speaker 1: who was really mobile and could move around. And so
Speaker 1: when your pockets moving around like that, that's a challenge
Speaker 1: for the offensive line, and Can was one of the
Speaker 1: guys who was able to really take advantage of that,
Speaker 1: not take advantage of it, but adjust to it and
Speaker 1: and do it well. David actually spoke with Cameron after
Speaker 1: he got drafted, and he kind of voiced what you
Speaker 1: were just talking about about how he's very versatile along
Speaker 1: the line, But where do you see him being best
Speaker 1: suited along the offensive line at the next level. Well,
Speaker 1: that's hard for me to say, but I think what
Speaker 1: I've heard and makes sense is is he probably doesn't
Speaker 1: have a size for an NFL tackle right now. UM,
Speaker 1: a guard might make more sense for him. Um that
Speaker 1: that happened last year with the forty Niners had had
Speaker 1: a player named Nate Davis who was drafted and he
Speaker 1: was a tackle um in college, was drafted by the Titans,
Speaker 1: is now their starting right guard. I think there's a
Speaker 1: lot of similarities between the two of them, and I
Speaker 1: think that's probably what will happen because he's got the skills,
Speaker 1: he's got the footwork, He certainly has the intellect that
Speaker 1: he could probably change up positions, but has at the
Speaker 1: size issue, it sounds like moving to the guard makes
Speaker 1: most sense. Well, when we think about his size, and
Speaker 1: you think when we talk about where he might be
Speaker 1: best suited along the lines, when you look at his
Speaker 1: skill set, is he more developed in pass protection or
Speaker 1: the run blocking game? Probably pass protection. Their run they
Speaker 1: they run blocking. They had a great running back and
Speaker 1: kidney named Benny LeMay And again a lot of the
Speaker 1: times when they used him. UM, it was out of
Speaker 1: a spread formation, shotgun kind of thing, and so it
Speaker 1: wasn't you get traditional, um, you know, line them up
Speaker 1: and knock them down kind of things. So Cam is
Speaker 1: not probably used to that as much as he used
Speaker 1: to being able to move around the pass protecting thing.
Speaker 1: He had to. He had to do a lot of
Speaker 1: things differently because of the kind of style offensive the
Speaker 1: offense they played. So I think he's probably more ready
Speaker 1: for that with his agility, UM, footwork, how he uses
Speaker 1: his hands, UM, and you know he's gonna have to
Speaker 1: probably bulk up and get a little stronger to really
Speaker 1: to help out in the running game more. He didn't
Speaker 1: play against a lot of top top competition throughout his career.
Speaker 1: UM in confidence usa UM. The one thing that that
Speaker 1: you can say for him. And a couple of the
Speaker 1: other guys who got drafted by Charlotte Alex Heismith the
Speaker 1: defensive end, and then lay who I was telling you about,
Speaker 1: who signed an undrafted free agent. They played Clemson back
Speaker 1: in September when they were ranked number one, and and
Speaker 1: those guys, I mean, obviously they wanted to win the game, um,
Speaker 1: which which they were not able to. Obviously, it was
Speaker 1: like fifty five to ten or something. But they wanted
Speaker 1: to use that game as an opportunity to show that
Speaker 1: they could play well in as individuals against top competition.
Speaker 1: And I think he was able to do that and
Speaker 1: and I think that's one thing that's going to help
Speaker 1: him his confidence as he moves to the NFL to
Speaker 1: the next level, knowing that he can line up against
Speaker 1: the best players in the country, UM and hold his
Speaker 1: own And he did that against against Clemson. Diving a
Speaker 1: little bit deeper into Cameron Clark as an individual, he
Speaker 1: was the offensive m v P, the team offensive MVP
Speaker 1: in ten, which is very rare for an offensive lineman.
Speaker 1: But how does that speak to his ability and his
Speaker 1: leadership on that team? Just just a great kid. Um.
Speaker 1: You know, as a reporter, you you look who you
Speaker 1: always want to have a guy who can go to
Speaker 1: for a good quota to explain things to you, UM,
Speaker 1: And and Cam was that guy. Um. He kind of
Speaker 1: has one of these magnetic kind of personalities that draw
Speaker 1: people to him. He was one of the players that
Speaker 1: came to the press conferences, UM more often than not,
Speaker 1: chosen by the coaches that come and speak to the media.
Speaker 1: And you know, really articulate, funny. Um always had a
Speaker 1: good take on things. So I think that's one thing
Speaker 1: that Jessy are going to get from him as is
Speaker 1: a guy Um who I think people are going to
Speaker 1: really be drawn to, and I think he can really
Speaker 1: mold himself into being one of the team's leaders. He ain't.
Speaker 1: Now let's talk about where Clark fits in with this
Speaker 1: offensive line, and we've mentioned his position versatility before well
Speaker 1: from a thirty thousand foot view, when you add McKay,
Speaker 1: Beckton and Cameron Clark to the mix of what Joe
Speaker 1: Douglas already did in free agency. But really, I think
Speaker 1: what stands out is the versatility of all of the
Speaker 1: players that Joe Douglas has brought in. It's just so
Speaker 1: much more solidified than two thousand nineteen last season that
Speaker 1: Jets started eleven different players up front, nine different starting
Speaker 1: line combinations. You knew Joe Douglas was going to emphasize
Speaker 1: the offensive line in the off season. He's done just that,
Speaker 1: and we can work our way from left to right
Speaker 1: if you want. Because McKay backed in, you know he's
Speaker 1: gonna play one of those tackle positions. Is gonna be
Speaker 1: left tackle or right tackle. Who knows George Bant he
Speaker 1: is the bill need to play both and he did
Speaker 1: just that in Seattle Chuma Adoga. He's a guy I
Speaker 1: think you play on either side. And then you had
Speaker 1: Cameron Clark to the mix, and then on the interior
Speaker 1: got Jonathan Harrison, Connor McGovern. Both of those guys can
Speaker 1: play center, but they can play guard. Greg Van Rotten,
Speaker 1: Alex Lewis, Brian Winners is still on the roster. You
Speaker 1: have those guys all on the interior, so you have
Speaker 1: position flexibility, you have depth. Joe Douglas and made no
Speaker 1: bones about it, the best five are going to play.
Speaker 1: So with that being said, I don't think we should
Speaker 1: and make it too caught up in while is he
Speaker 1: gonna be left guard, right guard, whatever, Joe Douglas is
Speaker 1: going to get his best five out there on the field.
Speaker 1: You know Beckton's going to be a tackle. You know
Speaker 1: fans going to be a tackle. But in Cameron Clark's case,
Speaker 1: it's how can you help you adopt? Why is early
Speaker 1: on and where is he going to fit in early
Speaker 1: on in his NFL career? Is it on the inside
Speaker 1: or is it potentially at right tackle? Like you mentioned
Speaker 1: at the start of the podcast, just because he played
Speaker 1: left tackle Charlotte does not mean that the Jets aren't
Speaker 1: going to start him actually on the right side to
Speaker 1: begin his NFL career. Yeah, I think really what stands out,
Speaker 1: and I want to reiterate that I agree with you,
Speaker 1: we're not going to project who will play at what
Speaker 1: spot across the starting five. But I think really what
Speaker 1: stands out with all the versatility and the players that
Speaker 1: were brought in, is that if something happened like last year,
Speaker 1: the injury bug really hit the offensive line. But if
Speaker 1: something like that were to happen this year, I think
Speaker 1: the Jet would be in a much better spot because
Speaker 1: of the background of all these players that we've mentioned
Speaker 1: and the versatility that they have to offer. Where for example,
Speaker 1: last year, Brandon Shell, who has never played left tackle
Speaker 1: in his pro career, had to switch from the right
Speaker 1: side to the left side, and then Chuma Adoga, who
Speaker 1: had been a right tackle at USC, ended up playing
Speaker 1: some left tackle. Last year, there were so many moving
Speaker 1: pieces for the Jets. But I think that if something
Speaker 1: happened this year where somebody got hurt, the transition would
Speaker 1: be a little more seamless because that player and theory
Speaker 1: would have already had experience on the pro level at
Speaker 1: that position. I agree, because that's the way Joe Douglas
Speaker 1: is building this thing. It's he's very strategic. Yeah, he
Speaker 1: wants to get better in the starting lineup, but he
Speaker 1: has to provide depth as well. You never want to
Speaker 1: go through another season again if you're Joe Douglas where
Speaker 1: you do have nine different offensive line combinations. And he
Speaker 1: said he was gonna embrace Sam Donald. He definitely has
Speaker 1: done that. Now where you're setting yourself up is Sam
Speaker 1: Donald is going to have potentially more time to throw,
Speaker 1: and also Lean was gonna have more holes in the
Speaker 1: run game. And finally that's also gonna set up your
Speaker 1: play action game. So a lot of things working in
Speaker 1: the jets favor right now. Now. The challenge, Ethan is
Speaker 1: how quickly can these guys come together because this is
Speaker 1: an unprecedented offseason and the Jets have gone through a
Speaker 1: virtual offseason program. And while it's been beneficial and while
Speaker 1: those guys are trying to get acclimated with each other,
Speaker 1: there's so many new pieces here and it's going to
Speaker 1: be a challenge because the Jets this spring won't have
Speaker 1: the opportunity to be on the field together and the
Speaker 1: offensive line, as you know, it's all about coesion and
Speaker 1: continuity and how quickly can these guys get up to speed. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I think the last point is really important here, because
Speaker 1: when you talk to different guys, whether it's Sam Donald
Speaker 1: or even somebody like George Fan who we recently caught
Speaker 1: up with, they're all saying, well, yeah, you know, I'm
Speaker 1: trying to reach out to the players and the new teammates,
Speaker 1: and the options are just kind of limited. I mean,
Speaker 1: it's basically like trying to catch up with your friend
Speaker 1: who lives across the country and you're limited to text
Speaker 1: or phone call or FaceTime. But the only difference here
Speaker 1: is for the majority of the players, especially on the
Speaker 1: offensive line, everybody's meeting each other for the first time.
Speaker 1: And that's including Sam Donald. And even when you think
Speaker 1: about the playmakers, that's a whole other story. So I
Speaker 1: think it's gonna be very interesting not only for the Jets,
Speaker 1: but really the entire league and kind of see what
Speaker 1: the ripple effect of that is. And the long story
Speaker 1: short here is that with the Cameron Clark addition, the
Speaker 1: Jets offensive line basically has another tool to play with,
Speaker 1: and that they're in a better spot than they were
Speaker 1: when they drafted McKay Peckton. And they're in a totally
Speaker 1: different spot than where they were before the draft, and
Speaker 1: even different spot to where they were compared to the
Speaker 1: end of the two thousand nineteen season. But Joe Douglas,
Speaker 1: like I said in the beginning of the podcast, days
Speaker 1: true to his word. He adds to the offensive line
Speaker 1: two times in the draft, and then he signs Jared
Speaker 1: Hilber's who played tackle for the Washington Huskies in the
Speaker 1: undrafted free agent process. So this line's gonna look very
Speaker 1: much different in twenty twenty, no matter who's starting. And
Speaker 1: like you said, the best five will be on the
Speaker 1: field come Week one. And that was another edition of
Speaker 1: the Official Jets podcast, the Draft Pick Profile series presented
Speaker 1: by Verizon Rolling On Here. Next up, Bryce Hall out
Speaker 1: of Virginia