Rookie Clady has the world at his feet

By Lee Rasizer, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published May 22, 2008 at 8:02 p.m.

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George Kochaniec Jr. / Associated Press

Offensive lineman Ryan Clady out of Boise State participates in a warm-up drill Thursday. Clady has been dubbed "Sweet Feet" by fellow lineman P.J. Alexander.

Ryan Clady hasn't felt the hot breath of opposing pass rushers down his neck.

The Broncos' first-round draft pick hasn't been exposed to an entire professional playbook - not even close, at this juncture. Heck, he hasn't even cashed his first paycheck.

But only four days into quarterback camp at Dove Valley, the rookie's got himself a nickname, courtesy of one of his fellow offensive linemen.

"P.J. called me 'Sweet Feet,' " Clady said, grudgingly, Thursday.

Well, if the oversized shoes fit . . .

"Yeah, 'Sweet Feet,' what's wrong with that?" asked P.J. Alexander, author of the rookie's tag. "His feet, from what I've seen, are pretty sweet. He's quick on his feet, moves well. He's impressive, man."

And size, athleticism and ability to translate learning concepts to the practice field are about the only information that can be gleaned at this stage.

"It's not hard to tell when you see him on the field, he's pretty athletic," Alexander said. "Every day he does something with his feet that's impressive to me."

So far, Clady, the No. 12 overall pick in April's draft from Boise State, has demonstrated that even if he's late off the snap, his quickness enables him to catch up with everyone despite missing a beat.

He also can recover if he's out of position because of his solid footwork, meaning he doesn't have to reach with his hands to compensate - a dangerous proposition against skilled defensive ends.

"Shoot, he's gifted, man. His feet are unbelievable," echoed Erik Pears, who is competing with Clady at left tackle this week. "He's obviously a huge human being, but he's got quick, quick feet and heavy hands. I see no reason why he shouldn't be great. He looks good."

Learning the Broncos' blocking scheme has been Clady's biggest challenge so far - it's "a lot more in detail than in college," he said.

Another challenge: "Probably waking up at 5 o'clock every day," he said.

Still, if you're early to rise, better via an alarm clock than a false start if you're an offensive lineman.

But the biggest challenge is yet to come - banging on big-bodied defensive linemen for a month of training camp in full pads. (The Broncos are sans protective gear this week.) That's where Clady's technique and playing strength will come more into play.

Not that the Broncos' ends didn't try to get an early gauge in those areas this week against the 6-foot-6, 317-pound newcomer.

"I was trying to see how strong he was when I went up against him," second-year defensive lineman Jarvis Moss said. "We locked up and I just tried to fling him up off me because he's a much bigger guy than me. But he's got the strength. He's got everything he needs, as far as I'm concerned. . . .

"He just needs to get more comfortable in our system."

The same could be said for all the rookies who gathered this week for their first on-field activities with the Broncos.

The biggest challenge comes in trying to apply the playbook without thinking too much. That process will drag on into June and July camps.

"There's a lot of stuff getting thrown in. But the coaches are keeping us sane," said Ryan Torain, a fifth-round running back out of Arizona State. "We just have to learn day by day and have a good time with it."

One way second-round pick Eddie Royal is dealing with the information overload is by using a crib sheet attached to his wrist.

"I had to," the receiver from Virginia Tech said with a chuckle. "I'm trying to break everything down in the meetings, and anything I feel I'm going to forget on the field, I just jot it down."

Clady admitted the transition has been "a little tougher" than he expected, but he's been getting help from teammates to augment the coaches' teaching.

He added he feels other players' eyes on him - and not just his feet - as they try to see just what Denver is getting at such a pivotal position.

Clady entered the draft as an early entry junior after 26 straight starts at left tackle in college.

"There's a lot of pressure on him, mentally," Broncos coach Mike Shanahan said of Clady. "There's going to be a lot of pressure on him physically. But we feel like he's got the ability to compete. We're going to start him as No. 1, but he's got to earn the position, just like everyone else."

• May 23, 2008

  2:30 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  flybys writes:

  Ryan Clady is exactly that type of premium athlete Denver needed for the offensive tackle spot that will protect quarterback Jay Cutler's blind side.

  He certainly looks the part and from what we hear he dances like Miami Dolphins' star Jason Taylor.

  What the Broncos have to hope is he has more hunger, more heart than another gifted big man -- George Foster.

  Coach Mike Shanahan once thought Foster could be a Pro Bowl player but Foster just didn't seem that interested or motivated by that praise.

  If Clady can stay healthy and hungry, Denver could have something almost as valuable as a star-caliber quarterback. It could have the star-caliber tackle that makes the quarterback and offense look special.

• May 23, 2008

  7:20 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  millertime3852 writes:

  Great article! Good to read what other linemen are saying about Clady. It's different coming from them than it is coming from a coach. They're clearly impressed.

• May 23, 2008

  8:42 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  GaryP writes:

  Beginning with Clady I've been very pleased with Shanny's personnel pick-ups this year. There are some questions due to injury (Robertson, Torain), but it looks like Shanny's picked up really good character players. I'm excited to see Torain run behind Clady.

  If the O-line can stay healthy, we should have an impressive offense. Our individual stats were great last year, we just couldn't get touchdowns in the redzone. With a healthy line (hell, a healthy team, for a change) we should have one of the top offenses in the league.

  Heh. I love this time of year. Anything is possible before reality sets in.

• May 23, 2008

  10:22 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  broncodano writes:

  Were only 21 games from the SUPERBOWL>>>>

  AND UNDEFEATED....

  bd

• May 23, 2008

  10:32 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  myerda00 writes:

  This GHF (glass-half-full) fan loves the expectations.
  Youth at OL; Clady, Kuper, Pears, Harris, Lichtensteiger.
  Youth at DL; Dumervil, Moss, Crowder, Thomas, Powell.
  Special teams will be special this year; Royal's returns.
  Wait till we see Kern punt. And I think Prater will win kicker.
  Mercy let the walking wounded come back well; Marshal, Scheffler, Nalen, Hamilton.

• May 23, 2008

  10:49 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  hoppman writes:

  I think the only people that ever thought George Foster was gifted was the coaching staff that reached for him in the draft. Most draftniks thought he was a second or third round pick at best, he was clearly a reach for the Broncos.

  Clady was not a reach, he may or may not pan out in the long run, but he was the best choice at that point. I think he will be successful but only time will tell.

• May 23, 2008

  11:14 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  buffsblg writes:

  No one is ever excited with a lineman in the first round, but this is exactly what the Broncos needed. Any player can be a bust, but if they have the talent (and almost everyone says Clady does) then hope can spring eternal. Myerda is right, youth up front can mean good things in the future. Patience is not the strong point of fans here, but there may be good things to come.

• May 23, 2008

  4:21 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  BMat writes:

  Ryan Clady = George Foster. Ballee dat . . .

• May 23, 2008

  8:59 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  ColoNative writes:

  Perhaps this is the breath of fresh air in an othrewise dismal off season. Hopefully one offensive lineman will be enough to revitalize the whole Bronco Malaize.

  But then again -

• May 24, 2008

  2:05 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  cj1030lee writes:

  hopefully Clady = Zimmerman...

• May 24, 2008

  3:10 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  MarcoPolo writes:

  I can't wait to see him on Dancing With the Stars.

• May 24, 2008

  9:39 p.m.

  Suggest removal

  aragornzxl writes:

  above post:
  LOL
  LOL
  Graceful feet anyone?

• May 26, 2008

  2:47 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  angryman1n writes:

  When will Denver realize it takes more than a nice news article to win championships? Hell if that were the case we'd have Nat'l titles across the board, and the Nugs would live up to their name.

  Clady hasn't proven anything beyond the fact that maybe he earned his low score on the Wonderlick. He's having a hard(er) time transitioning. He admits the limited playbook is already more detailed than anything he had in college. He has yet to prove how he will manage a full blown NFL season.

  I don't expect this season. The Broncos have a lot to learn. I'm still calling it a rebuilding season.

• May 28, 2008

  11:28 a.m.

  Suggest removal

  SJBronco writes:

  Should have drafted Williams, This guy can't excel at the NFL level. At least we tried though, I would have put a foot into the TV had we drafted another Wide out or corner back #1. The kid from vandy was a better fit for our offense and is a far better talent.

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