Clement bent on bleeding green all over again
Not long ago. Corey Clement couldn’t go anywhere without being hounded for a breakdown of the Philly Special he started in Super Bowl LII.
The pride of Glassboro, N.J. almost went loony describing how he took the snap from Jason Kelce, pitched it to Trey Burton and celebrated with the rest of the Eagles after the tight end zinged it to quarterback Nick Foles for a touchdown on fourth down from the 1-yard line of the New England Patriots.
Until a few days ago, Kelce was the only one left on the roster who touched the ball on that play. Clement, Burton and Foles were gone, and in some cases forgotten.
“It’s been a roller-coaster,” Clement said on a teleconference call Thursday. “I haven’t had the best two years that I wanted due
to injury but right now I can only keep my head high and realize I’ve got to take my next opportunity as if it’s my last.”
Clement, still only 25, signed a one-year contract with the Eagles for the league minimum $825,000. He said he didn’t know if he had any other suitors, that he told his agent to make a deal with the Eagles.
Right now, Clement is happy just for the chance to push the reset button as the Eagles didn’t think him valuable enough to tender as a restricted free agent. The next time the Eagles run Philly-Philly, Jalen Hurts, not Clement, will the guy who touches the football.
“I’ve been always gunning to get back to Philly,” Clement said. “Once they did their releasing of me. I was just eager to get right back to it because I knew I had a lot left when it comes down to the Bird Gang life. I want to be here. I want to retire here one day. This team means
a lot to me. And when I first found out the news that they weren’t going to tender me I took it to heart a little bit because Philly is home to me. I love the city, everything. If I could bleed green I would.
“But it comes to a time where it’s a business. And now I can only look forward because I’m back being an Eagle, my head is held high and I’m ready to get going.”
That Super Bowl of Feb. 4, 2018 seems like it was an eternity ago, Clement catching four passes for a team-leading 100 yards, including a touchdown.
That also was the last full season he was healthy. The running back out of Wisconsin missed the final seven games in 2018, including the playoffs with a knee injury that required surgery. He played in just four games before undergoing shoulder surgery in 2019.
Miles Sanders is the Eagles’ running back of the future, having proven his value with a stellar rookie season. Boston Scott is the backup, and a fine one at that.
Hurts, whom the Eagles drafted in the second
round, almost certainly will have a bigger role than Clement, assuming the latter makes the team.
Rest assured, the Eagles will add bodies at the position before deciding if Clement or Elijah Holyfield will be the fourth back.
Clement is back where he was as a rookie — unproven, undrafted, underdog. It was crazy hearing him address a question about touches.
“I’m not trying to be the guy who’s trying to demand a role,” Clement said politely. “I’m coming in as a guy who’s got the rookie mindset again. I’m coming in trying to take jobs. That’s what it’s got to come down to. I’ve got to get back to the dog eat mentality — head-on, head down, let’s get to work.”
Clement said he was cleared a month ago and despite the coronavirus, has been working on his “grind.
“I’m still getting it in nonstop,” he said.
No one questioned Clement’s work ethic. If anything, he may have overworked himself in the offseason. He said he’s taking precautions to train
more seriously, more efficiently. Like Carson Wentz did last year, Clement’s buying into a nutrition program. Anything he can do to help his game.
Clement didn’t attract interest from other teams, per a source. It’s not a total surprise as the COVID-19 precautions have inhibited travel, physicals and visits for players. Though physicals with neutral doctors were OK and other running backs switched teams, Clement wasn’t in the same stratosphere as Todd Gurley, now with the Atlanta Falcons.
Clement is an example of how quickly fortunes can change. One day he’s riding down Broad Street in a Super Bowl championship parade, secure in the knowledge he played a leading role in a 41-33 win over the hated Patriots. The next thing he knows, he’s crossing his fingers he gets another chance.
“I’m right back where I need to be,” Clement said.