CB Nate Clements (All B1G, NFL Pro Bowl)

[Buckskin86]

San Francisco 49ers: Does Nate Clements bounce back strong?

Cary Edmondson/US Presswire
The 49ers need Nate Clements to return to top form.

The quarterback situation will remain a prevailing storyline for the 49ers, but Alex Smith's starting status isn't really in question. The team has seen enough from him this offseason to keep him as its starter heading into the regular season, particularly with the organization putting so much emphasis on continuity.

That's why I've singled out Clements' status as a key question for training camp.

Clements struggled last season and didn't seem like himself. It was almost a relief when an injury ended his season. Clements trained on his own this offseason, so the 49ers can't be certain what they'll get from him upon his return. The secondary, already a potential weakness on a team without many glaring holes, needs Clements to regain top form.

NFC West training camp preview - NFC West Blog - ESPN

 

[Buckskin86]

49ers cornerback Clements finally healthy again
By JANIE McCAULEY AP Sports Writer
Posted: 08/06/2010 1

SANTA CLARA, Calif.?Nate Clements slapped hands with Shawntae Spencer following the fellow cornerback's interception. Clements patted linebacker Scott McKillop on the helmet after another nice play by the defense.
Clements is having an absolute blast being back on the field for the San Francisco 49ers. Finally gone are the glum days of sporting a sling over his right shoulder and the grind of daily rehabilitation.

Clements missed the final nine games last season after he broke his right shoulder blade in the Niners' 18-14 loss at Indianapolis on Nov. 1. He might have returned in the final weeks had the 49ers, who finished 8-8, been in playoff contention.

"It's good to be injury-free," Clements said this week. "I healed up before the season was over with, so I got a chance to really get even more time and rest and rehab and training. It feels good just to be back running around on the field."

The 30-year-old Clements has never reached the postseason, and he hopes to change that in his 10th NFL campaign. This marks his fourth year with the 49ers following six in Buffalo.

When on the field last season, Clements was effective and often matched up with the opponents' top receiver. He combined on 35 tackles, 30 of those solo, and had one interception.

49ers cornerback Clements finally healthy again - San Jose Mercury News

 

[Buckskin86]

49ers Find New Slot for Clements
Matt Maiocco
CSNBayArea.com

"I see it as an opportunity," Clements said. "I see it as a chance to go out and make a lot of plays and get in the mix."

"His size and speed and his ability inside with his body frame and movement skills is the reason we put him in there," Greg Manusky said of Nate Clements.


SANTA CLARA -- The 49ers have new plans for Nate Clements this season.

Clements, the 49ers' starting left cornerback, began working this week at nickel back. Defensive coordinator Greg Manusky has shifted Clements inside to cover the slot receiver in passing situations with third cornerback Tarell Brown playing outside.

"His size and speed and his ability inside with his body frame and movement skills is the reason we put him in there," Manusky said of Clements. "It's always tough to find those nickel guys who can cover a tight end or a bigger receiver inside. And he's doing a good job of it."

Clements, who enters his 10th NFL season, has never seen significant time as a nickel back in his career.

"I see it as an opportunity," Clements said. "I see it as a chance to go out and make a lot of plays and get in the mix. As long as I play to the strength of the defense and I play to my strengths, it's another way I can help out the team."

http://www.csnbayarea.com/08/12/10/...ng_maiocco_v3.html?blockID=288817&feedID=5936

 

[Buckskin86]

49ers: Nate Clements striving to regain lock-down form
By Daniel Brown
[email protected]
Posted: 08/19/2010

Cornerback Nate Clements enters his 10th season, and his fourth with the 49ers, needing...

Nate Clements has a personal website that he calls lockdown22.com. The home page even features a lock and a chain, signifying that he's got opposing receivers under wraps.

Based on his past few years, however, Clements is at the risk of false advertising. He enters his 10th season, and his fourth with the 49ers, needing to reestablish himself as one of the NFL's premier corners. Clements hasn't made a Pro Bowl since 2004.

In the least, he's healthy again. Clements said Thursday he has fully recovered from the fractured scapula that ended his season in Week 8 last season.

The next step will be regaining his lost step, which is why Clements will be watched closely when the 49ers face the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday at Candlestick Park in the second exhibition game.

Asked Thursday for a review of Clements' training camp so far, Mike Singletary didn't exactly gush.

"He's doing fine," the coach said. "He's just continuing to do some of the small things that I really think can separate him from being a very good cornerback. And that's just the detail of his position.

"I think that's really the determining factor going forward. I just think he has to continue to work on all the little details of playing that position, and I think he'll do just fine."

Just fine? Clements has always set the bar higher. With help from his parents, he set big dreams at an early age and worked tirelessly to get there. Nate Sr. was a firefighter and electrician, and Emma worked for a shipping company. Together they taught their son that the only way to achieve a goal was through discipline and sacrifice.

"They always encouraged me and pushed me to be the best ballplayer I could be," Clements said. "I train that way. I practice that way. And I try to go out to the field and play that way."

Clements would report to the Shaker Heights (Ohio) High weight room at 6 a.m. Then he would stay up until midnight to work on his SAT prep courses. In the few hours he slept, Clements dreamed of playing in the NFL. And, as if his needed more fuel, Clements visited the Pro Football Hall of Fame while still in high school. "It was definitely inspiring,'' he said.

A first-round pick of the Buffalo Bills in 2001, the one-time Ohio State standout was selected the defensive rookie of the year by Sports Illustrated. He promptly emerged as an NFL rarity: a physical cornerback who combined size, speed and raw coverage skills.

That's why the 49ers signed him to an eight-year $80 million deal that included $22 million in guaranteed money in 2007.

http://www.mercurynews.com/49ers/ci_15835216

 

[Buckskin86]

Clements-intercepts-White-chases down pokes-out-ball - NFL Video

 

[Buckskin86]

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwTBbGO43H0"]YouTube - 49ers vs Rams at home 2010 - nate clements INT negated by ahmad brooks offsides penalty.m4v[/ame]

 

[3074326]

 

[Buckskin86]

Sources: Clements won't return under current deal
Jan. 13, 2011
Matt Maiocco
CSNBayArea.com

Veteran cornerback Nate Clements will be asked to accept a reduced salary in order to return to the 49ers in 2011, according to team and league sources familiar with his contract.

Clements signed a free-agent deal with the 49ers on March 3, 2007, that had a reported value of eight years, $80 million. But the contract was backloaded with more than $50 million in non-guaranteed money scheduled to be earned in the final four years of the arrangement.

The 49ers want to retain Clements in 2011, but only at what it deems to be an acceptable salary, sources told Comcast SportsNet.

Clements, 31, a 10-year veteran, is scheduled to earn a non-guaranteed salary of $7.25 million in 2011 with another $7.95 million available in "likely-to-be-earned" incentives.

The potential that Clements could receive more than $15 million in 2011 makes it a certainty he will not return to the 49ers at that price, sources said. The 49ers have 15 players on the team who are unsigned for next season. Clements, in essence, is the 16th.

Clements told CSN during the final week of the season he expects to play for the 49ers in 2011.

"I signed a contract and I plan to live up to it," Clements said. "I'm not really worried about that. I'm confident in my ability. I understand that this is a business and change is made every year. So I'm not really worried about whether I'm here or not. But I signed a contract and I'm plan on being here."

The 49ers are expected to approach Clements in the next six weeks to negotiate a new deal. If the sides are unable to reach an agreement, the 49ers would release Clements -- either before the collective bargaining agreement expires on March 3 or after the new CBA is agreed upon.

If the 49ers release Clements, they would have no further financial obligations to him and he would become a free agent.

Clements started all 16 games this past season and ranked third on the team, behind linebackers Patrick Willis and Takeo Spikes, with 82 tackles. He intercepted three passes and forced three fumbles. He has 10 interceptions with the 49ers in the four seasons since arriving as a free agent from the Buffalo Bills.

The 49ers ranked 13th in the NFL in total defense in 2010, but were 24th against the pass. The opposition completed 65.1 percent of its pass attempts against the 49ers and compiled a combined 90.0 passer rating. The 49ers lost their first five games of the season and finished with a 6-10 record.

"Everybody had a part in basically underachieving this year, myself included," Clements said "I'm very disappointed."

http://www.csnbayarea.com/01/13/11/...ng_maiocco_v3.html?blockID=390547&feedID=5936

 

[Buckskin86]

Many of you have asked via Twitter (@mattbarrows) and other means whether the team will cut ties with cornerback Nate Clements before the league year ends as the Packers did today with linebacker A.J. Hawk. In Hawk's case, he was set to earn a $10.5 million bonus on the first day of the new league year. Clements also is scheduled for a huge salary in 2011, but unlike Hawk there is no trigger point -- aside from the start of the season -- that would prompt an early release.

Read more: http://blogs.sacbee.com/49ers/archives/2011/03/niners-tender-t-1.html#ixzz1FXkIvEWv

 

[Buckskin86]

Strong hand: Winners from the 49ers draft

Hello, Patrick Peterson. So long, Nate Clements. That would have been the likely scenario if Peterson, the LSU cornerback, had slipped to the 49ers at pick No. 7 in the draft. That he didn't - he was taken two spots earlier by division rival Arizona - not only increases the chances that Clements returns to San Francisco for a fifth season, it strengthens his bargaining position by a considerable margin.

Cont..

Read more: http://blogs.sacbee.com/49ers/archives/2011/05/strong-hand-win.html#ixzz1LxBMeOws

 

[y0yoyoin]

GM Trent Baalke suggested Thursday that CB Nate Clements would have to restructure his contract to stay with the 49ers this season.

Asked if Clements would be back, Baalke replied, "You'd have to ask Nate. Honestly, I can't tell you right now." Clements is due a non-guaranteed salary of $7.25 million with another $7.95 million available in "likely-to-be-earned" incentives. The 49ers can release Clements at the beginning of the new league year without paying him another penny. There's no way he's returning unless he accepts a heavy paycut.

Source: Matt Maiocco on Twitter
May 12, 1:57 PM

 

[3074326]

I hope he takes a pay cut because that secondary is going to be paper-thin without him, even though he's been an incredible disappointment.

He's getting a pay cut regardless. Depends on if he wants to stay in SF or not.

 

[Buckskin86]

May 18, 2011
Clements: No talk of restructuring yet

Cornerback Nate Clements, who has been one of 15 or so 49ers working out at an off-site location this spring, said he has not yet had any discussions with the team about restructuring his contract for the 2011 season.

In 2007 Clements was one of the top free agents on the market, and the 49ers signed him to a blockbuster eight-year, $80 million contract. That deal, however, was back-loaded with non-guaranteed money in the last four years.

A big chunk of that money is due to come into play this year. He is scheduled to earn $7.25 million in base salary. In addition, CSN Bay Area reported that he could earn another $7.95 million in likely-to-be-earned incentives.

All of which points to the 49ers either reworking a deal with Clements or releasing him before the season. When I asked general manager Trent Baalke last week whether Clements would be on the team in 2011, he said: "I don't know. You'd have to ask Nate. Honestly, I couldn't tell you right now."

The 49ers took two cornerbacks in the draft, but neither is positioned to be a starter this year. Third-round pick Chris Culliver only switched from safety last year and is still learning the position. Curtis Holcomb was a seventh-round pick who will battle other late rounders and undrafted free agents like Phillip Adams and Tramaine Brock for a spot on the team.

I asked Clements whether he thought his bargaining position was strengthened by the fact that the 49ers didn't take a cornerback early in the draft. Said Clements: "Even if they had gotten a cornerback high, I wouldn't be worried. You can't do anything until the lockout's over."

Read more: http://blogs.sacbee.com/49ers/archives/2011/05/clements-no-tal.html#ixzz1MngWX12N

 

[Buckskin86]

Q: If the 49ers can sign Nnamdi Asomugha, would Nate Clements be released (once the lockout if over of course)? (Yousef Hammad)
My response: I seriously doubt the 49ers are going to spend on one player the kind of money it would take to lure Nnamdi Asomugha. For every action, there's an equal and opposite reaction. Therefore, the 49ers would be forced to make sacrifices elsewhere on the roster if they competed with the likes of the Cowboys and Redskins for Asomugha.

Regardless of what they do in free agency, the 49ers already have a plan with Clements. They have a price they believe he is worth. If he wishes to play at that price, he'll be on the team.

When asked if Clements would be on the team in 2011, 49ers general manager Trent Baalke last week answered, "I don't know. You'd have to ask Nate. Honestly, I can't tell you right now."

Clements told the Sacramento Bee that the 49ers have not mentioned anything about a pay cut. That's not a surprise. The 49ers did not extend or re-sign any of their players prior to the end of the 2010 league year. But when the lockout ends -- and the new rules are known -- the 49ers will get to work on implementing their plan.

http://www.csnbayarea.com/05/19/11/...ng_maiocco_v3.html?blockID=525581&feedID=5936

 

[ScriptOhio]

Nate Clements plans to stay in San Francisco

He?ll most likely have to take a pay cut, but CB Nate Clements plans on staying with the 49ers next season. The veteran cornerback told the SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS he wants to return in 2011.

?Absolutely,? Clements said. ?I never said I didn?t. That?s not really an issue/?
​

Clements, 31, is working out with San Francisco teammates in the Bay Area.

Entire article: http://www.mercurynews.com/49ers/ci_18123436?nclick_check=1