Clayton Waiting For His Chances By all but ignoring the receiver position in free agency and the draft, the Bucs have given Michael Clayton a vote of confidence. Confidence, though, is not what Clayton needs. Clayton said he has an abundance of confidence. What the Bucs receiver needs, what he wants, is an opportunity - a genuine opportunity. He won't come out and say that. But you can see it in his eyes when the discussion finally turns, as it must with Clayton, to the reasons for his downward-spiraling career. You probably already know the gist of Clayton's story. Since his record-breaking rookie season in 2004, his numbers have dropped like stones tossed into a lake. Ask him why and he swears it's not because of a lack of confidence. Nor, he swears, is it from a lack of focus. Mention opportunity, though, and Clayton gives you one of those "You said it, I didn't" smiles. Since his rookie season, when he was thrown 122 passes, Clayton has been the target just 160 times. That works out to an average of 53 passes per season or, in Clayton's case, four passes per game. That's not much of an opportunity, which is why Clayton is hoping the 2008 season will be different. In a way, it already is. Though it is only May, Clayton says his fitness is better than it has been since he came to the Bucs as a first-round draft pick out of LSU in 2004. "Right now, I have no nagging injuries," he said. "No knees, no shoulders, no feet, no toes. I don't have any of those problems, so I'm able to get my work in and improve my game, and that's big for me." Injuries are one of the things that have gnawed at Clayton's production. They have kept him from working out properly during the offseason and from playing at peak efficiency during the regular season. And while Jon Gruden has long pressed Clayton to do more (or less) to protect himself from injury, Clayton doesn't seem willing to change, even if it continues to limit his opportunities. No surprise there, as Clayton gets as much joy out of throwing the block downfield that springs a runner free as he does catching the ball. "We do whatever it takes to win," Clayton said of himself and his fellow Bucs receivers. "You see us out there on kickoff team, blocking defensive ends, doing the jobs that not your average wide receiver can do." Job One for any receiver, though, is to catch the ball, and critics suggest that Clayton fails to do that as often as he should. So do some startling statistics. During the past three years, Clayton has caught 54 percent of the 160 balls thrown his way. For comparison, only 25 of the 87 players with 50 or more receptions last year caught a lower percentage of their passes. Those numbers might help explain why Clayton, who has caught one touchdown pass the last three years, is getting fewer balls thrown his way. Clayton accepts some ownership, acknowledging he has dropped balls on occasion. But he refuses to buy into the belief that he is unreliable, and he vehemently argues against the knock that he drops too many balls. "Do you really think that I drop balls?" he asked. "Look at my catches, look at my drops, do the statistics. I wouldn't say that I'm a receiver that drops balls." The Bucs might not see him that way, either. They have added two new receivers, and one of them is a rookie who is more of a specialist than a receiver. The plan could be for the Bucs to lean a little more on Clayton this year than in years past. If so, it will be up to Clayton to make the most of the opportunity. "When the opportunity comes, you have to catch the ball, because that's when it counts the most," he said. "There's been some opportunities that I've missed out on, but I've made some great catches as well." Roy Cummings, The Tampa Tribune 22 May 2008