TAMPA - In his first appearance on Monday Night Football, rookie receiver Michael Clayton caught eight passes for 142 yards. He caught a national television audience by surprise. He caught the eye of uber-analyst John Madden.
He also caught flak.
Razor sharp on the field, Clayton apparently bobbled his biggest decision of the day. Underestimating the formality of the MNF experience, he felt out of place wearing a casual linen outfit to and from the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis.
Wardrobe infraction.
Ten yards.
Time to go shopping.
"It won't happen again," Clayton said.
The irony of Clayton's garment gaffe, which his teammates were all too eager to point out, is the Bucs' first-round draft choice is among the team's snappiest dressers, joining the likes of Derrick Brooks, Brian Kelly and Ronde Barber on the fashion A-list.
"It's about maturity," Clayton said. "It says a lot about your character and your manhood. Football players get away with a lot. They don't have to follow the dress code when they go in clubs because they get in free. A lot of guys wear jerseys, hip-hop wear in places where everybody else in the club is dressed up.
"I'm always dressed up."
At his new home in North Tampa, Clayton has not one, but two walk-in closets filled with fine threads. Fond of matching linen outfits that not only are comfortable in the Florida heat, but have an understated elegance, Clayton's style is casual dressy.
"It's very important that you've got a lot of sets, matching shorts," he said. "I've got like 10 of these. All one color is in: yellow, canary yellow, brown, gray, black. All colors."
Add a pair of leather sandals, a belt, a bracelet, a diamond-encrusted watch, diamond stud earrings, a long chain with a football pendant and Clayton's diamond LSU national championship ring - don't forget the bling! - and he is ready to go anywhere.
Clayton, 22, claims to be tight with his money, despite receiving a $6.2-million signing bonus with a six-year contract that pays $440,000 this season. He does not feel the need to spend big to look good. He has outfits costing $500, but is just as comfortable with the many others he owns that cost $100.
"I can look good in any of them, but if I can look good for $100, why not?" he said.
Lately, however, Clayton has discovered custom-tailored suits.
So much for frugal.
"It's the man that makes the suit, not the suit that makes the man," he said, "but once you get a custom-made suit, other suits just don't feel right."
Aside from the row of newly-acquired, custom suits hanging crisply on hangers with matching shirts and ties, the most intriguing element to Clayton's closet is the shoes. Clayton likes shoes, but he doesn't like to bend over.
In most people's closets, the top shelf is reserved for seldom-used items. Sweat shirts. Hats. Old sweaters. But in Clayton's closet, the top shelf is reserved for shoes, arranged neatly in pairs, toes pointed to the front at eye level for the 6-foot-4 receiver.
"Some people say I dress like a girl because I'll put on maybe three 'fits and take them off because I don't think it looks right," Clayton said. "So if I'm constantly bending down changing shoes, it won't work. I've got back problems."
Clayton has a gold-hued suit with a purple shirt for LSU occasions. He has a black suit with a red, white and black tie for Bucs occasions. And, because teammates dissed his Under Armour duffel bag, he now has a rolling Louis Vuitton suitcase for road trips.
