Trevor Anthony "T. J." Clemmings (born November 18, 1991) is a former
American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
offensive tackle
Offensive may refer to:
* Offensive, the former name of the Dutch political party Socialist Alternative
* Offensive (military), an attack
* Offensive language
** Fighting words or insulting language, words that by their very utterance inflict inj ...
. He played
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
at
Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...
. He was drafted by the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
in the fourth round of the
2015 NFL Draft
The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previous ...
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
Paterson, New Jersey
Paterson ( ) is the largest City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Passaic County, New Jersey, Passaic County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.basketball in high school on a team that included future NBA player Kyle Anderson and switched sports despite his mother's concerns about the risks of injury in football. Despite playing only two seasons of
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
at Paterson Catholic, he earned status as the top overall prospect in the state of New Jersey. As a senior, he helped lead his team to a perfect 11–0 record en route to the title. For the season, he collected 73 tackles, seven sacks and seven forced fumbles. Following his senior season, he was named North Jersey Defensive Player of the Year, All-New Jersey, All-New Jersey Non-Public, All-Passaic County and All-BPSL (Bergen-Passaic Scholastic League).
He also established himself as a Division I prospect in basketball and received scholarship offers from Big East schools
Providence
Providence often refers to:
* Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion
* Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity
* Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...
and Seton Hall after he spearheaded a defense that notched five shutouts and yielded just 41
points
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Places
* Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland
* Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States
* Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland
* Point ...
on the year (3.7 points per game). In track & field, Clemmings notched a top-throw of 12.90 meters (42 feet, 3 inches) in the
shot put
The shot put is a track and field event involving "putting" (throwing) a heavy spherical ball—the ''shot''—as far as possible. The shot put competition for men has been a part of the modern Olympics since their revival in 1896, and women's ...
as a senior in 2009.
Regarded as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Clemmings was ranked as the state's No. 2 prospect and the country's No. 16 strongside defensive end. Scout.com rated him the No. 1 overall player in New Jersey and the nation's No. 6 defensive end prospect, as well as the country's No. 38 player overall. He was selected to PrepStar "Dream Team" and was rated one of the country's top 50 overall prospects by PrepStar. In June 2009, Clemmings committed to the University of Pittsburgh to play
college football
College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States.
Unlike most ...
.
College career
Clemmings played defensive end his first three years at Pittsburgh. As a true freshman he appeared in eight games, making three tackles. After being redshirted in 2011, Clemmings played in eight games in 2012 with six starts, finishing with 20 tackles. Prior to the
2012 BBVA Compass Bowl
The 2012 BBVA Compass Bowl, the sixth edition of the game, was a post-season American college football bowl game, held on January 7, 2012, at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama, as part of the 2011–12 NCAA Bowl season. The game, which was tele ...
, he was switched from defensive end to offensive tackle. In 2013, he became a full-time offensive tackle and started all 13 games at right tackle. Clemmings returned as a starter in 2014.
Professional career
Pre-draft
Clemmings entered the draft process as one of the top prospects in his position and likely a first round selection, but fell on draft boards presumably because of a report that surfaced in the week leading up to the
2015 NFL Draft
The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previous ...
saying he had a stress fracture in his foot.
At the 2015 NFL Combine, Clemmings was the best of all offensive linemen with a vertical jump of 32.5 inches (0.83m) and a 4.54
20-yard shuttle
The NFL Scouting Combine is a week-long showcase occurring every February at Lucas Oil Stadium (and formerly at the RCA Dome until 2008) in Indianapolis, where college football players perform physical and mental tests in front of National Footba ...
. He also showcased his strength by benching 225 pounds 22 times.
Minnesota Vikings
Clemmings was selected by the
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...
in the fourth round (110th overall) of the
2015 NFL Draft
The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previous ...
. He was the tenth offensive tackle selected in the draft. He signed a four-year, $2,804,955 deal that includes a $524,955 signing bonus that's all guaranteed.
Clemmings tied a franchise rookie record by starting all 16 games after the Vikings lost veteran starter Phil Loadholt at right tackle for the entire season due to an achilles injury. He joined an offensive line that helped running back Adrian Peterson lead the NFL in rushing with 1,485 yards and posted the fourth-ranked rushing attack in the league. After starting left tackle
Matt Kalil
Matthew Francis Kalil (born July 6, 1989) is a former American football offensive tackle. He played college football at USC and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings fourth overall in the 2012 NFL Draft. He was also a member of the Carolina Pan ...
was placed on injured reserve on September 21, 2016, Clemmings was announced as the starter for the rest of the season.
On September 2, 2017, Clemmings was waived by the Vikings.
Washington Redskins
Clemmings was claimed off waivers by the Washington Redskins on September 3, 2017. He was placed on injured reserve on November 16, 2017 with an ankle injury.
On September 1, 2018, Clemmings was waived by the Redskins.
Oakland Raiders
On September 2, 2018, Clemmings was claimed off waivers by the
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
. He was placed on injured reserve on November 2, 2018 with a knee injury.
Chicago Bears
On May 31, 2019, Clemmings was signed by the
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
. He suffered a quadriceps injury in the preseason and was placed on injured reserve on August 27, 2019.