The Seattle Seahawks reportedly had some interest in bringing back Jadeveon Clowney before the season, but he made what was likely the most logical choice for the edge rusher. He signed with the Houston Texans, the place he has a home and spends his offseasons.
The news was first reported by NFL insider Ian Rapoport, it seems. Not that being first to the news matters. Everyone will eventually know, and it's not like the move won't be obvious. In reality, the first people to break the news were the Texans and Clowney when he agreed to a deal.
The sadness is that Clowney won't be joining a likely elite group of edge rushers in the Pacific Northwest. Sure, the group might be an aging one overall, as DeMarcus Lawrence, Dante Fowler Jr. and Uchenna Nwosu are all near 30 years old or well over, and Clowney wouldn't have made them younger, but he would have made the team better.
Former Seattle Seahawks edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney signs with the Houston Texans
The edge rusher played for the Seahawks in 2019 and was quite good, even though his raw statistics will show he only had three sacks. He has always been among the best at his position in terms of run support, but he isn't far off when it comes to quarterback pressure. He is a true three-down edge rusher, and the kind that every team needs.
Mike Macdonald knows that, too, of course. In 2023, with the Baltimore Ravens, when Clowney was still the defensive coordinator there, Clowney had a fantastic season with nearly 10 sacks while supplying his usual high-end run defense. Macdonald's scheme hasn't changed much overall, so Clowney would still have been a good fit.
Unfortunately, the tie between the current Seattle Seahawks head coach and the aging edge rusher wasn't enough to get Jadeveon Clowney back to the Pacific Northwest. He would have been a useful tool in the immense toolbox of Mike Macdonald. He was once before, and he would have been again.
Clowney signing with the Texans makes sense, though. He doesn't have to travel far for home games, and Houston is a very good team with an elite defense. The organization obviously watched what the Seahawks did last season in winning the Super Bowl.
Quarterback play matters, of course, but defense wins championships. Seattle did that with Sam Darnold, and Houston can do that with CJ Stroud. By signing Clowney, they have simply made a great defense into a better version. That's scary.
Add us as a preferred source on Google