Jadeveon Clowney Talks Heating up With One Team Planning ‘All-Out Blitz’
The clock is ticking. Any team looking to add an experienced, athletic, and three-time Pro Bowl defensive end to its roster needs to step up. Jadeveon Clowney last played for the Seattle Seahawks and is now a man without a team. If he is to play the full 2020 season, Clowney needs to sign by the weekend to clear all COVID-19 requirements for the opener. Teams are expecting to make a late push with one team planning an ‘all-out blitz.’
Clowney’s a three-time Pro Bowler
Jadeveon Clowney played college football at South Carolina. The 6-foot-5, 255-pound defensive end battled through injuries in college, but NFL scouts saw enough in him to make him the No. 1 overall selection in 2014. Clowney was scooped up by the Houston Texans and played the first five of his six years in the NFL in Houston.
Clowney played just four games in his rookie season as a knee injury put his promising career on hold. The following season, Clowney played in 13 games, starting nine of them. He compiled 4.5 sacks and recorded 40 combined tackles. It was his third season in the NFL when he made a real impact.
In 2016, Clowney made the first of his Pro Bowls and was named First-Team All-Pro. Clowney recorded six sacks, 52 combined tackles, and a forced fumble. In 2017, Clowney had his best statistical season when he started all 16 games and racked up a career-high 9.5 sacks, earning his second Pro Bowl honor. He returned to the Pro Bowl in 2018 after finishing with nine sacks in 15 games.
Jadeveon Clowney traded to the Seattle Seahawks in 2019
In March of 2019, the Houston Texans placed the franchise tag on Jadeveon Clowney. In August of that year, the Texans traded him to the Seattle Seahawks. With the Seahawks, he only had three sacks but was one of Seattle’s most disruptive linemen. He scored a pair of defensive touchdowns, including an interception return of a Kyler Murray screen pass.
Clowney became an unrestricted free agent after the 2019 season. The Seahawks made every effort to sign him, but couldn’t work out a deal. Seahawks GM John Schneider said Clowney was productive and a great guy off the field.
“He came in, did a great job for us,” Schneider said, according to ESPN. “We made an effort to re-sign him. We’d still – the door is not closed, but we couldn’t wait any longer. We had to conduct business, and so he knew that. Everything was real cordial. He’s a great guy, represented by a great guy. I go all the way back to Brett Favre (in Green Bay) with his representative, Bus Cook. We’ve had great conversations. He just is going to kind of feel his way through this odd process, and we’ll see where that goes.”
Seahawks interested; Saints planning ‘all-out blitz’
According to NFL.com, there are at least three teams with interested in signing Jadeveon Clowney, including the Seattle Seahawks, New Orleans Saints, and Tennessee Titans. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Saints are expecting to send an ‘all-out blitz’ to acquire the veteran defensive end.
Pelissero said Clowney has spoken multiple times to Saints head coach Sean Payton. NFL.com noted that Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network has reported that the Saints have been asking players to restructure their contract. The Saints have $7 million in cap space.
According to Gregg Bell of the Tacoma News Tribune, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll was asked if the team was interested in bringing back Clowney. “Always competing. Always competing,” was Carroll’s answer.
