FLOWERY BRANCH — Todd McClure wore a red baseball cap, emblazoned with the Falcons logo, as he sat at his locker this week.
All around were fellow members of the Falcons’ offensive line. They also donned red caps. However these were labeled much differently. A gift from offensive tackle Tyson Clabo, the hats tout “Todd McClure, Pro Bowl” surrounding the center’s No. 62.
The mini-campaign to get the veteran McClure, in his 14th season, to his first Pro Bowl is mostly good-natured fun but also part serious quest.
“A lot of it has to do with my general attitude of trying to give Todd a hard time, and the rest of it is that he deserves it,” Clabo said. “Put those two things together and you get a hat.”
Clabo said he got a “good deal” on the hats.
“I think it’s totally obnoxious and I’ve told Tyson that, but he continues to do it,” McClure said, tongue firmly in cheek. “I don’t think he listened to his parents when he was coming up, so he doesn’t listen to authority or older people.
“I don’t know if these little red hats will do the trick. It hadn’t happened in 13 years. I don’t think five red hats are going to put us over the top.”
Despite the ribbing from teammates, McClure, 34, is a staple of the offensive line and talk turns serious about his role on the team.
“I’ve said it before, he’s really our centerpiece,” Clabo said. “He gets us going in the right direction. He’s a really good communicator. He has that unique ability to make a decision, communicate it quickly.
“A lot of guys freeze up. They know what to do, but they can’t get it to come out of their mouths. He’s been doing it for so long that he’s really good at it. We are better with him.”
Quarterback Matt Ryan has taken the ball from McClure in his three-plus seasons in the NFL and credits him for his development.
“Todd is probably one of the most influential people, for me personally, since I’ve been here with the organization,” Ryan said. “The way he helped me out making the transition from college into the NFL, setting the protections, doing all those types of things was invaluable for me personally and really for our football team the past four years. I’ve learned a ton from him and certainly wouldn’t be the player I am without his help.”
McClure, the longest-tenured Falcon, was one of two seventh-round picks by the team in 1999. He has started 166 of 168 games at center. This season McClure had a franchise-record streak of 144 consecutive starts snapped by a knee injury that cost him the first two games.
“That’s a fun group, and they’re just having some fun,” coach Mike Smith said after noticing the fashion statement.
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