Report: Jimmy Clausen is one of the better backups in the NFL

By Kyle Thele

There is an old adage that the most popular football player on a team is the backup quarterback.

In the Bears case, that may not be far off. Although, it has little to do with how good Jimmy Clausen is, and more to do with the public’s feelings towards Jay Cutler.

That’s not to say Clausen is without an upside. When compared to other backups around the league, Clausen ranks in the top half of the league, according to Sporting News.

It’s almost a given that, at some point, there will be a cry to bench Jay Cutler, whether it’s because the Bears are losing or because he’s going through one of his bad stretches. The alternative is Clausen, whom the new Bears offensive staff likes. He’ll have a decent honeymoon if he does come in, for any reason.

It’s not exactly a glowing endorsement, but compared to the mess in Washington, it could be worse.

On a 10 point scale, the Sporting News team gave Clausen a five. That has him tied with eight other quarterbacks and behind six more.

The highest rankings went to Indianapolis journeyman Matt Hasselbeck and Arizona’s Drew Stanton. The worst grade went to Cowboys backup Brandon Weeden, who was given only a one.

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