Bill Williamson

The immediate legend has it that Maurice Clarett couldn’t believe it when the Denver Broncos ended his two-plus years away from football Saturday night by making him the 101st overall pick and final choice of the day.

Clarett wasn’t alone.

In one wild call, Clarett’s selection swiftly pushed Aaron Rodgers’ fall from top pick to Brett Favre’s eventual replacement into the second story of the day.

It's rare you say that the final pick of the third round qualifies as the story of the draft. But make an argument against it.

Clarett has galvanized the draft world for the past two years. Every step, make that every misstep, has been high intrigue for the former Ohio State tailback hero turned Columbus pariah.

Now, the drama ends. Clarett is a Bronco. And he is a NFL player about three or four rounds earlier than expected.

Why? Why did the Broncos take him so early? Why did they take him at all?

Because they think they know running backs as well as any team in the NFL. And they may be right.

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Denver coach Mike Shanahan probably could turn Star Jones into a 1,200-yard back. Remember, this is the guy who turned Olandis Gary and Rueben Droughns into bell-cow backs. That isn’t easy duty, but both of those average players had their Gale Sayers-like moments at Mile High.

In Denver’s special zone-blocking scheme, instincts and hard, down-hill running style often outweigh pure talent.

Remember Terrell Davis? Shanahan does. Davis was not considered a quality pro prospect coming out of Georgia in 1995. He was too slow. Denver took him in the sixth round. He flourished in Denver’s system and was the catalyst of back-to-back Super Bowl championships in 1997-98.

Shanahan wasn’t publicly suggesting a similar fate a decade later Saturday night. However, he did mention Davis’ trailer-hitch 40-time when asked about Clarett’s abysmal 4.82 40-time at the Combine in Indianapolis in February.

“That could be a misconception,” Shanahan said of Clarett’s disaster. “Terrell Davis wasn’t so called ‘very fast.’ But he played very fast in games and had great cutting ability. So speed isn’t always a factor. (Clarett’s) got great elusiveness, the ability to make some big runs. Sometimes speed can be overrated.”

Shanahan does have a point. In their system, speed just doesn’t matter ... intangibles do. Denver thinks Clarett has those abilities. That’s why they took him so early.

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There were indications that Denver wasn’t the only team with Clarett on their draft radar. There was talk Dallas was preparing to take him in the fourth round and that St. Louis and Baltimore were looking at him in the fifth or sixth round.

“He was one of the guys we felt had a big upside, especially in our zone-blocking scheme. We’ll find out.”

Indeed.

Now, after two years of scandal and court cases and slow 40 times and bad conditioning, Clarett is in the NFL earlier than expected. And he’s in running back heaven. While second-year pro Tatum Bell has the inside track to be the primary back, Clarett will get his shot.

“It’s wonderful. Knowing the Denver Broncos’ system and knowing the offensive line they have and just knowing they run the ball,” Clarett said. “It’s nothing more than I can imagine.”

He’s not alone.

Still, Shanahan said now that he’s got his NFL chance, Clarett could either become the superstar he was when he led the Buckeyes to a national championship as a dominating true freshman. Or he can continue the downward spiral of the past two years.

“He either takes advantage of it or he doesn’t,” Shanahan said. “But we feel like it was worth the chance  ... We think he will fit into our system very well. Now only time will tell he takes advantage of the situation.”

It’s a situation that ends a two-year soap opera about three rounds earlier than expected.

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