It appears a saga seven months in the making is finally coming to a close. For the entirety of the NFL offseason, defensive end Jadeveon Clowney has been seeking a team to play for.
After the Seattle Seahawks were eliminated from the postseason, Clowney made it clear he wanted to be paid top dollar and compete with a championship-caliber contender. However, the coronavirus pandemic hit before free agency could truly take off, and Clowney was unable to meet with teams.
Clowney remained a free agent throughout the summer, as rumors kept swirling about where he would land. Now it seems he has found a new home in Nashville, as the Tennessee Titans are expected to sign him.
There was a litany of teams rumored to be in the Clowney sweepstakes, including the Saints, Browns, and Ravens. However, despite this, the Titans were always linked as a potential landing spot.
Jadeveon Clowney is expected to sign with the Tennessee Titans sources tell ESPN. He rejoins Mike Vrabel who was on the Texans defensive staff for Clowney’s first 3 years in the league in Houston. The Saints, the other main suitor, made a very strong case. This was a close one.
— Dianna Russini (@diannaESPN) September 5, 2020
Initial word is one year $12 million for Clowney. Unconfirmed but that’s the talk. If so, same as Ngakoue.
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) September 5, 2020
The Titans went 9-7 in the regular season last year, but ended with an unexpectedly deep playoff run after barely squeaking in as the No. 6 seed. Tennessee made it all the way to the AFC Title Game, where they were ultimately defeated by the eventual Super Bowl Champions, Kansas City.
After locking up quarterback Ryan Tannehill and running back Derrick Henry to new deals, it’s clear the Titans are going to attempt to build off last year’s momentum. Signing Clowney to bolster an already underrated defense shows Tennessee is committed to improvement.
As for the Seahawks, not bringing Clowney back feels like a major miss for an otherwise stellar offseason. Seattle’s defensive line is still questionable at best, outright disastrous at worst, and didn’t really seem to get better.
Clowney may not be the most elite pass rusher if looking at raw sack totals, but his disruptive nature is evident, just ask 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in Seattle’s wild Monday Night Football win over San Francisco last year.
With the season kicking off next week, the Seahawks are still searching for answers at their most vulnerable position.
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