Clayton Tune made his NFL debut for the Cardinals last week and is trying to make inroads as a rookie fifth-round pick. But Tune has confidence in himself, and that gives him something in common with one of the players he has admired, veteran QB Aaron Rodgers.
When Tune (and fellow rookie Michael Wilson) took part in the Rookie Premiere event back in May, there were the normal photos and videos shot of each guy in their team's uniform for the first time. But the company Fanatics also set up a cool addition -- players were brought to a locker room to ostensibly do an interview. They were then surprised with a videotaped greeting from their NFL hero, projected on the wall next to them.
"Excited to see you prove a lot of people wrong," Rodgers tells a smiling Tune. "I only got passed up by 23 teams. Use all of that for motivation."
Tune (like the other rookies) also had a gift underneath the bench on which he was sitting. For Tune it was an autographed Rodgers jersey with a personalized message. It is kind of funny to see now, since the jersey is clearly from the Packers, since this all happened early in the offseason and before Rodgers was traded to the Jets.
Still, it was an excellent gesture, one Tune certainly will remember fondly. Now Tune -- who is expected to to get another chunk of playing time this week when the Cardinals host the Chiefs.
