Why I’m Starting Clayton Football

Welcome to Clayton Football.

The mission of this pure pro football site is to provide you with NFL news you can use and NFL news you can enjoy. For more than two decades, I was so fortunate to work at ESPN. I can’t tell you what a great company it is. My thanks for all the great years, and it saddens me to leave this great company.

But what I’m moving on to will be a labor of love and it is creating some genuine excitement. I always felt my role at ESPN was to be a reporter for the 32 NFL teams. We are assembling a team that will do that and more.

Why my own site? Why a subscription model? It’s no secret that the media industry – particularly the sports media industry – is in a state of flux. The advertising model is crumbling and many media outlets have been forced to part ways with talented writers as a result. Subscriptions provide a sustainable source of revenue that allows writers to focus on what they’re great at. That’s no secret. But we are trying to do even more. Frankly, I had many options after leaving ESPN. But by partnering with Redescribe, a strong up-and-coming media company that gives journalists like myself the opportunity to run their own websites, I believe we can have the most success and best serve you, in this setting. We have the freedom to build a modern football website with information and analysis for diehard fans, fantasy players and gamblers alike.

Though the years, I have always concentrated on the transactions, the injuries, the offensive and defensive trends, and the contracts. For Clayton Football, we are assembling a team to meet this mission.

For injuries, we have Dr. David Chao, who is the best at making injury analysis that serves football fans long-term and short-term. As the former team doctor for the San Diego Chargers who has now become famous for his ability to diagnose and evaluate injuries, he can watch the television broadcast and determine if a player suffered a potentially serious injury or just a minor one. He is close to 95 percent accurate. Adding to that, he can estimate the return time for an injured player. That is news fantasy players and gamblers can use.

For contracts, we have Joel Corry, a former agent and genuine salary cap expert. Not only can Joel project what free agents can earn, but he can also break down the salary cap of a team and show what teams could be impacted by free agency.

Matt Williamson used to scout for the Cleveland Browns. For Clayton Football, he offers several valuable subjects. His eyes can see what many can’t. For fantasy players, he can give football evaluations to put you ahead in your league. After the injury report comes out on Friday, Matt can project the fantasy impact of players who are out or are game-time decisions.

Bill Williamson has decades of experience covering the NFL and he stays in touch with everyone. Bill will give the quick reaction to breaking news and provide historical insight.

More is on the way.

I still have my other jobs– host on 710 ESPN Seattle, main fill-in on Movin’ the Chains on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Monday columnist for the Washington Post, opposing team sidelines for Seahawks games, and sidelines for Westwood One.

But this project is going to be a blast. Join us. We are here to serve you at Clayton Football.