With their third and final pick of the fourth round, the New York Jets selected versatile offensive lineman Cameron Clark out of Charlotte.
Clark is a mauler in the run game and, like Mekhi Becton, he moves people with his physicality. He is a finisher. who can set the tone up front to help protect Sam Darnold. Clark can come in and compete for a starting job on the offensive line, as he has experience playing all five positions. He projects best as a guard at the next level.
With that said, let’s get to know the Jets’ newest addition to the offensive line. Here are four things to know about Clark.
Team MVP
Typically, an offensive lineman is not voted a team’s offensive MVP, especially if they start in just eight of 12 games. Cameron Clark is an exception.
Clark earned that honor for his efforts at the left tackle position in 2017. He had shown promise on the left side as a redshirt freshman, starting two games on the blindside. That was enough for the 49ers to hand him the keys to the left side, where he was pancaking edge rushers left and right.
Versatility
Something that Joe Douglas has specifically looked at when adding offensive lineman is their versatility. Cameron Clark has experience playing all five positions on the line.
ESPN draft pundit Mel Kiper Jr. noted that Cameron Clark has the ability to come in Day 1 and compete for a starting spot, but not exactly on the left side. That likely belongs to Mekhi Becton for the foreseeable future. Teams see Clark as an offensive lineman who has the ability to be shifted inside and show off his versatility with his ability to play multiple positions on the line.
At the next level, Clark will probably convert to guard, but he allowed just five pressures on 354 protection snaps last season at left tackle. That’s a pressure rate of 1.4 percent, which puts him in the 98th percentile in the nation among offensive tackles.
Relationship with Mekhi Becton
Cameron Clark already has a great relationship with Jets’ first-round pick, Mekhi Becton.
Clark and Becton trained together before the NFL combine. They talk all the time and they’re excited to play together, Clark said. Something the Jets were obviously missing on their offensive line last season was comradery; the late addition of Ryan Kalil affected that. Having two linemen of the future who are already comfortable with one another certainly bodes well for Gang Green in the future.
Team Captain
A common theme in Joe Douglas’ draft picks thus far? Leadership. La’Mical Perine was a team captain at Florida, James Morgan was a team captain at FIU and Cameron Clark was a team captain at Charlotte.
Joe Douglas has said that’s he looking for a certain type person, not just a player. Clearly, that type is leadership. Clark was a team captain in 2018, starting all 12 games at his left tackle spot. He was also named first-team all-conference after he started all 13 games in 2019.
Clark appeared in a program-record of 49 games while starting 35 games. It’s clear that he left a footprint on the program, which is shown by his captainship and being named team MVP in 2017.
