The Tennessee Titans put in “a lot of time and effort” to try and bring Jadeveon Clowney to Nashville, according to general manager Jon Robinson, but in the end it paid off after they were finally able to land him.
On Monday night, Robinson spoke about the addition of Clowney for the first time since the team made it official. He did so while appearing as a guest on head coach Mike Vrabel’s weekly radio show.
As one would expect, Robinson is “super excited” that the team was able to sign the former No. 1 overall pick, per Jim Wyatt of Titans Online.
“There was definitely a lot of time and effort that went into this one,” Robinson said of landing Clowney, a three-time Pro Bowler who ultimately picked the Titans over the Saints and Seahawks, among others. “We’re just super excited that at the end there, we were able to work with J.D. and come up with a contract and add him to the team. I know him and his family, they’re excited to get to Nashville. He’s excited to meet his teammates and ready to roll.”
Robinson went on to call Clowney a “disruptive player” and explained how he offers versatility to a Titans defense that he is already familiar with after playing under Vrabel when he was the Houston Texans’ defensive coordinator in 2017.
“I think he has proven that he is a disruptive player in this league,” Robinson said of Clowney. “He has played in coach Vrabel’s system, where he puts him in a lot of positions, moves him around so he can be successful, and we’ll do the same thing with him now that he is a Titan. We’ll try to put him in spots and match up with the guys that we have on the team to try and stuff the run and get after the passer.”
As Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reported on Tuesday night, Clowney’s one-year deal with the Titans has a base value of $13 million, but can go as high as $15 million with incentives. Among the incentives is a $1 million bonus should Clowney hit 10 sacks, which would be a career-high.
Despite all the waiting and effort the Titans put into the Clowney pursuit, it wasn’t until Saturday night that Robinson and Co. were able to seal the deal after upping their offer from a base value of $12 million to $13 million, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport revealed.
In the end, it was all worth it. The Titans entered the offseason with a huge need at EDGE after it was a big reason for their demise in last year’s AFC Championship Game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
That need became more dire after free-agent acquisition and outside linebacker Vic Beasley reported late to camp this year and missed all of training camp following his placement on the NFI list.
Now, the Titans have both Beasley and Clowney in the fold, which is a huge upgrade from 2019, and both players are expected to make their debuts on Monday night when the Titans take on the Denver Broncos in Week 1.
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