| No. 89 St. Louis Rams | |
| Wide receiver | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Date of birth: July 2 1982 | |
| Place of birth: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |
| High School: Arlington | |
| Height: 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | Weight: 195 lb (88 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College: Oklahoma | |
| NFL Draft: 2005 / Round: 1 / Pick: 22 | |
| Debuted in 2005 for the Baltimore Ravens | |
| Career history | |
| |
| Roster status: Injured Reserve | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Career NFL statistics as of Week 2, 2010 | |
| Receptions | 246 |
| Receiving Yards | 3,259 |
| Receiving TDs | 14 |
| Stats at NFL.com | |
Mark Jermaine Clayton (born July 2, 1982 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma) is an American football wide receiver. Clayton played for the University of Oklahoma Sooners from 2001 to 2004, and currently plays for the St. Louis Rams of the National Football League.
Education[]
Clayton was selected by the Baltimore Ravens in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft, just hours before he was scheduled to complete his communications degree at Oklahoma University. He obtained his degree in 2010 through the university's degree completion program.[1]
Football career[]
College career[]
After redshirting in Oklahoma's 2000 national championship season, Clayton's college career began in 2001, when he started 8 of Oklahoma's 13 games, and made 46 catches for 524 yards and 3 touchdowns as the Sooners won the Cotton Bowl Classic. In 2002, he made only one start, but managed 26 receptions for 416 yards, including 5 touchdowns, which tied for the team lead among receivers. In that year, the Sooners won the Big 12 championship as well as the Rose Bowl, a first for any Big 12 team.
His profile exploded in 2003, as he garnered All-American and All-Big 12 honors after a junior season in which he took aim on the school record book. His 83 receptions, 1,425 yards, and 15 touchdowns all smashed previous marks (66, 1,034, and 7, respectively).[2] The quarterback who threw the passes, Jason White, won the Heisman Trophy, and the Sooners advanced to the Sugar Bowl before losing to national champion LSU. Clayton was a Biletnikoff Award finalist.[3] Several of Clayton's "highlight reel" catches during this season demonstrated his ability to gain large amounts of yards after the catch (YAC).
Clayton's 2004 senior year again netted All-America and All-Big 12 recognition, though his 66 receptions, 876 yards, and 8 touchdowns were not quite as eye-popping as the previous season. The Sooners again won the Big 12 championship and played for the national title against USC, though they lost in the Orange Bowl. Clayton set the record for career receiving yards with 3,241.[2]
Professional career[]
Pre-draft[]
| Ht | Wt | Arm length | Hand size | 40-yd dash | 10-yd split | 20-yd split | 20-ss | 3-cone | Vert | Broad | BP | Wonderlic | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 ft 10⅜in | 193 lb | 30⅝in | 9⅛in | 4.41 s | 1.53 s | 2.64 s | 4.07 s | 6.95 s | 36½ in | 9 ft 10 in | x rep | 21 | |||||||
| All values from NFL Combine[4] | |||||||||||||||||||
Baltimore Ravens[]
Clayton was the 22nd overall selection in the 2005 NFL Draft by the Baltimore Ravens.[5] He started his rookie season slowly due to various injuries but picked up speed during the latter part of the season, a major part of his rehabilitation process was guided by his best friend Christopher Pannozzo. He finished the year with 44 receptions for 471 yards and 2 touchdowns. He also added 8 rushes for 33 yards and a touchdown.
In his second year, his stats improved significantly, with 67 receptions for 939 yards and 5 touchdowns.
2007[]
In 2007, Clayton had 48 receptions for 531 yards, down from his impressive 2006 season.
2008[]
In 2008, Clayton had some bright spots during the year. He had 4 catches for 87 yards and a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns, 5 catches for 164 yards and a touchdown against the Cincinnati Bengals, and 4 catches for 128 yards against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Ravens won each game. Clayton had receptions of 70, 48, and 53 yards. He finished with 695 yards on 41 receptions and 3 touchdowns.
2009[]
In the season opener against the Kansas City Chiefs, Clayton had 5 receptions for 77-yards and 1 touchdown. Towards the end of the game he caught a 31-yard pass from Joe Flacco to put the Ravens ahead 31, 24. The Ravens went on to win the game 38 to 24.
St. Louis Rams[]
[ 2010[]
On September 6, 2010, Clayton was traded to the St. Louis Rams along with a 7th round pick in the 2011 NFL Draft in exchange for a 6th round selection in the 2011 NFL Draft. In his first game as a Ram and with only being with the club less than a week Clayton caught 10 passes for 119 yards to lead the team in both categories. In week 5, Clayton was placed on injury reserve with a torn patellar tendon in his right knee, which is ending his season.
NFL Statistics[]
| Through 9/15/10 | Receiving | Rushing | Passing | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | Games | Rec | Yards | TD | Avg | Long | Att | Yards | TD | Long | Att | Comp | Yards | TD |
| 2005 | Baltimore | 14 | 44 | 471 | 2 | 10.7 | 47 | 8 | 33 | 1 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | Baltimore | 16 | 67 | 939 | 5 | 14.0 | 87 | 7 | -30 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 | Baltimore | 16 | 48 | 531 | 0 | 11.1 | 52 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 | Baltimore | 16 | 41 | 695 | 3 | 17.0 | 70 | 6 | 81 | 1 | 42 | 1 | 1 | 32 | 1 |
| 2009 | Baltimore | 14 | 34 | 480 | 2 | 14.1 | 54 | 4 | 28 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010 | St. Louis | 1 | 10 | 119 | 0 | 11.9 | 39 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |