Chiefs’ Frank Clark has interesting take on Tom Brady

Frank Clark isn’t the biggest film guy.

Don’t get the wrong impression, the Kansas City Chiefs veteran defensive end puts in all the necessary work in preparing for the next opponent. It’s just that he doesn’t tend to spend an inordinate amount of time breaking down game footage.

Instead, he draws upon his experience and instincts to size up the players trying to block him and the quarterback he is trying to sack.

Which makes Clark’s nuanced breakdown on Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady rather remarkable.

Whether Clark intended to or not, he’s come up with a brilliant analysis for how a quarterback with the athletic ability of a scratch golfer has managed to stay healthy and active for as long as Brady has over a 21-year career.

And it has nothing to do with foot speed or quickness or explosiveness.

“He got these shoulders,” Clark said, explaining what he believes is one of the great attributes of arguably the greatest quarterback to ever play.

Come again?

“Have you ever seen Tom Brady’s shoulders when he in that pocket?” Clark asked reporters this week during a Super Bowl media Zoom call.

As Clark explained, Brady has a way of moving his shoulders that makes his body look like it’s going one way when in reality it’s going the other. If you’re a defensive lineman trying to get ahold of Brady, that shoulder move often results in pass rushers tackling air rather than Brady.

As was the case when the Chiefs and Buccaneers played in Week 12. Kansas City defensive tackle Chris Jones fell for the Brady shoulder shake and came up short on a potential sack.

“I think Chris missed a sack because he like shimmied them shoulders a certain way and Chris like completely missed him,” Clark said. “He was like, ‘Man, I don’t know how I missed Tom Brady.’”

As a result, a quarterback who probably can’t beat a league-average NFL right tackle in a 40-yard dash is often able to cleverly escape danger against players four times as fast and twice as young.

It’s the shoulders, man. And from what Clark can tell, they are as effective today as they were when Clark was a young kid watching Brady back in the day.

“Playing in the league for about 20 to 30 something years, for him to be able to move his shoulders like that still, it’s quite amazing,” Clark said.

His instincts are part of the reason Clark is such a money player in the playoffs. Take last year, for instance, his first after signing a five-year, $104-million contract with the Chiefs.

After netting eight sacks during the regular season, Clark had five in three postseason games. The trend has continued this season. He had six sacks during the 2020 regular season but already has two sacks in two postseason wins.

“I don’t know if it’s something about the playoffs. I like winning football games, man. I’m a competitor,” Clark said. “You get to that point in the season where things really matter — win or go home. I’m not saying the season doesn’t matter, but it’s a scale.”

Rest assured, Clark won’t be focusing on Brady’s shoulders on Sunday. And that could mean Clark doing what he seems to do best this time of year, and that is getting to the quarterback.

Contact Vincent Bonsignore at vbonsignore@reviewjournal.com. Follow @VinnyBonsignore on Twitter.