Official NFL Football with white autograph panels autographed by former LSU star and current wide receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Michael Clayton

Michael Rashard Clayton (born October 13, 1982 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana) is a wide receiver for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League. Picked 15th overall in the 2004 Draft, he is currently the highest-drafted wide receiver in the history of the Buccaneers. In his rookie season Clayton posted 80 receptions for 1,193 yards, which led all NFL rookie wide receivers in 2004 and ranks fifth all-time in NFL history among rookie wide receivers.

Clayton was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers with the 15th selection of the 1st round of the 2004 NFL draft. After a promising 2004 rookie campaign with Tampa Bay, where he led all NFL rookies and the Buccaneers with 80 receptions for 1193 yards, and his team with 7 touchdowns, Clayton had a relatively disappointing season in 2005. With knee surgery in the offseason and a season riddled with small mistakes on the field, he finished up with just 32 receptions for a total of 372 yards and no touchdowns. He was forced to sit out the final game of the regular season against the New Orleans Saints with a turf toe injury, and also sat out the Buccaneers playoff match up against the Washington Redskins. His second season was very disappointing and inconsistent.

The start to the 2006 season showed that Clayton had returned to his healthy past of 2004. Clayton looked good with 3 receptions and 34 yards despite the Buccaneers offensive struggles on September 10th in a 27-0 loss to the Baltimore Ravens. Continuing his return to his 2004 form, he caught 6 passes for 55 yards and a touchdown against the Cincinnati Bengals on October 15, 2006. His touchdown, thrown by Bruce Gradkowski, came with seconds left and gave the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the go ahead lead for their first win of the 2006 season. Unfortunately, following an undisclosed injury, the Buccaneers placed him on injured reserve, ending his season with four games remaining.

He followed that overall performance with a forgettable 2007 season, although he did come on strong down the stretch. He made the most of his opportunities at the end, when the Buccaneers were resting many of their starters (which many analysts considered a mistake). He caught 22 passes during his 14-game season, 16 of those came in the last four contests and 10 coming in the last two. He also amassed 192 of his 301 yards in those four games.

Clayton got to play in his first post-season contest on January 6, 2008 against the eventual Super Bowl-Champion New York Giants. He caught 3 passes for 39 yards.

He looks to build upon his late 2007-08 semi-success with a good 2008 season, which will be his contract year.