The bottom line on NFL draft weekend was that [Maurice Clarett] wasn't projected to go on the first day; some projected him to be bypassed altogether. Instead, he was taken in the third round by the Denver Broncos, a Super Bowl-winning organization led by a coach with a near-impeccable reputation. Some of it already has rubbed off on Clarett; in many minds, he now might not be so bad if Mike Shanahan likes him.

How "bad" Clarett really is has always been up for serious debate, anyway. "Character issues" is shorthand for a number of problems, real and speculated, attached to Clarett, but don't let anyone fool you about what the overriding problem was. As even Clarett has said, "I've never beaten anyone up or anything." Not that that's ever stopped college or NFL teams from welcoming a player.

Oddly enough, Clarett's critics - and there were many, some of them justified - point to a possible lack of toughness. Yet is there anyone who was forced to endure more unnecessarily on his path to the NFL than Clarett? Maybe, just maybe, his desire to play football burns hotter than he's getting credit for, and supposedly that's what teams like.