When the game in on the line ... who are the NFL's best performers in the clutch? We have the list, which includes Carolina quarterback Jake Delhomme.

Publication: Football Digest

Publication Date: 01-NOV-05

Bookmark this article Print this article Link to this article Email this article Digg It! Add to del.icio.us RSS

COPYRIGHT 2005 Century Publishing

YOU'RE TRAILING. TIME IS RUNNING out. The game, perhaps even the season, hangs in the balance.

Jake Delhomme wants the ball.

In the past two seasons, the Carolina Panthers quarterback has proven that he knows what to do with it in pressure situations. In 2003, his first season as a starter, he led the Panthers to eight victories on the game's final possession, including a double-overtime road win over the St. Louis Rams in the playoffs. In drives for the winning points in the final two minutes that season, he completed 22 of 29 passes for 232 yards and two touchdowns for a passer rating of 121.6. Last season, despite a string of injuries that devastated the Panthers, Delhomme added three more fourth-quarter comeback victories.

Most of the time, Delhomme is an ordinary quarterback, certainly not what you'd call a superstar. In crunch time, though, few are better. Which is why Delhomme is among the NFL's 10 most clutch players, the guys any coach would want on his team when the odds are longest and the stakes are highest.

"Certainly, you believe you have that ability [to perform in the clutch], because if not, this league will eat you up." Delhomme says. "We have been in a lot of close games, and that's kind of by our design. That's our blueprint, I guess you can say. But you just have that confidence to know that, hey, we have done this already a few times. Let's just do it again."

The ability to do it again and again trader pressure is rare, and those who possess it are among the NFEs most treasured 'commodities. The New England Patriots, for example, are thrilled that their quarterback is the unflappable Tom Brady, that disruptive safety Rodney Harrison patrols their secondary, and that they can rely on Adam Vinatieri to make the last-second,...

Read the full article for free courtesy of your local library.