The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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MICHIGAN FOOTBALL for their pick later in the second round. "The board was really getting picked clean," Carolina general manager Dave Gettleman said. "We had five players up there, and a couple of them fell off real quick, and then it was time for us to make the move." The 6‑3, 271‑pound Clark was predicted to go much later in the draft after a domestic violence assault charge from a November arrest — eventually dismissed and he pleaded down to a misdemeanor — cast a shadow over his draft fortunes. However, the Seattle Seahawks felt confident they had vetted Clark thor‑ oughly. "Our organization has an in‑depth understanding of Frank's situation and background," Seattle general manager John Schneider said. "We have done a ton of research on this young man. There hasn't been one player in this draft we spent more time analyzing and scrutinizing than Frank." While local media outlets decried the selection, including a Seattle Times col‑ umn by Larry Stone that was scathing in its criticism, the Seahawks felt Clark was worth the risk. "We know he has unique qualities," head coach Pete Carroll said. "We know he can be a quality outside rusher, but he also does a lot of stuff — Michigan moved him to the inside rush, as well. "We are just thrilled to have the chance to figure that out and to find where he fits to complement the rest of the guys." The selection of Ryan was met with approval from the Green Bay and national media; CBSSports.com gave the pick of the 6‑2, 240‑pounder an A‑ on its report card. "His instincts are something that really stand out," Green Bay director of player personnel Eliot Wolf said. "He can get through traffic and make plays on the out‑ side, penetrate and make plays on the inside run. He's pretty good in coverage. Kind of an all‑around guy who adds really good value to our team." The 6‑4, 217‑pound Gardner played eight games at receiver in 2012, catching 16 balls for 266 yards and four touchdowns, before transitioning back to quar‑ terback. He could stick with the Patriots. "The Patriots generally like to take players that exhibit a lot of toughness and have high‑level playing experience at a school like Michigan," MassLive.com writer Kevin Duffy said. "They're a team that doesn't have a lot of size at receiver. "I think with Gardner, and this is the Patriots way, they like to take an athlete believing you can teach him technique and coach him up but you can't teach the physical gifts. In the late rounds, they drafted a bunch of athletes and then they signed Gardner knowing he could help them out, but if not they can cut him in camp without having invested much." — Michael Spath