Next stop for Jimmy Clausen

Mike Shanahan seems to be channelling his inner George Allen. The Future Is Now. Many believed that the Redskins would draft Jimmy Clausen with the fourth overall selection in the upcoming 2010 NFL Draft. Now that Washington has made the trade for Donovan McNabb, where Clausen lands in the draft could very well be determined by what happens to Jason Campbell.

The Redskins have two options with Campbell. Keep him as a backup, or trade him. The offseason signing of Rex Grossman seems to be the indicator that the backup role is already filled, so now they are looking to trade their former 1st Round pick. Going down from Washington on the draft board, it will be interesting to see if any of the teams in the top half of the draft will make a deal.

Kansas City has Matt Cassell, so that doesn't look like a team that would pick up Campbell. Seattle just traded for Charlie Whitehurst, and they also have Matt Hasslebeck, so their quarterback situation looks to be set. Then there is Cleveland. They released Derek Anderson and traded Brady Quinn, then signed Jake Delhomme and traded for Seneca Wallace. Since Mike Holmgren coached Wallace at Seattle, he knows what he is getting in him and I can't see the new General Manager looking to muddle the quarterback situation there even more by adding another ingredient to the mix. Oakland has JaMarcus Russell and Bruce Gradkowski. They seem to be upset that McNabb did not land out on the West Coast, and they have to decide whether trading for Campbell is the move that will help them win now.

Buffalo can sit and wait at the ninth slot. They might see Campbell as an improvement over Trent Edwards, or they can select Clausen as their franchise quarterback. A week ago Jimmy Clausen looks to be signing a $20 million plus signing bonus if Washington were to select him fourth overall. Now he might fall out of the top ten if Bufflao looks in another direction. But I don't see Clausen falling too far, and some team is going to get a quarterback who played in a pro style offense in college and now has a bit of a chip on his shoulder. But Clausen will need to hit the ground running. I thought the same thing about Brady Quinn three seasons ago when he fell to #22, but he and his agent overestimated his worth and a holdout cost him dearly. If Clausen gets signed and in camp early, look for him to have an immediate impact with the team that he falls to in the draft.