Mothman wrote:
A stubborn determination to develop him because he was drafted in the 4th round? I don't know. Whatever you're missing, I'm missing it too.
My guess is that they think he has the physical tools but needs time to learn. They brought in a physically talented guy who was in the middle of a conversion and they knew needed work.
Some interesting things about him via Wikipedia.
Regarding him on defense.
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.[2] 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.[3] 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.[4]
I'm not sure if he was moved to the offensive line because he wasn't working on defense or what;
Prior to the 2012 BBVA Compass Bowl, he was switched from defensive end to offensive tackle.[6] In 2013, he became a full-time offensive tackle and started all 13 games at right tackle.[7][8] Clemmings returned as a starter in 2014.[9]
Pre-draft he was apparently thought to be a first round pick by some at least;
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 saying he had a stress fracture in his foot.
Perhaps the foot injury has started causing issues? He apparently wasn't too terrible in 2015 (how did I not realize he was playing there?);
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.[11] He joined an offensive line that helped Adrian Peterson lead the NFL in rushing with 1,485 yards and posted the No. 4-ranked rushing attack in the league.
From another article;
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/news ... ot-injury/
Clemmings, who has been compared to New England Patriots tackle Sebastian Vollmer, is currently projected to go No. 28 to the Denver Broncos in the mock drafts of NFLDraftScout.com analysts Rob Rang and Dane Brugler.
Clemmings was a defensive end until two years ago, recording 20 tackles in eight games. He made the switch to right tackle full-time in 2013 and went on to start every game over the past two seasons. Raw at the position, Clemmings is considered to have strong upside, with many scout pointing to the success of former quarterback/tight end/defensive end Lane Johnson, who was selected with the fourth overall pick by the Philadelphia Eagles two years ago.
I think the bottom line is that they've got a physically talented guy at a position they're very thin at and are hoping they can still do something with him.