Former Carolina Panthers star pass rusher ranked among NFL's best free agents

Jadeveon Clowney could have made an impact for Carolina this year - instead he'll make one elsewhere.

Dec 22, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers linebacker Jadeveon Clowney (7) during the second half against the Arizona Cardinals at Bank of America Stadium. | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

The Carolina Panthers haven't re-hired Matt Rhule or given Matt Kalil or Teddy Bridgewater any new big contracts lately, but they're still prone to make mistakes from time to time. Arguably the biggest blunder in an otherwise strong offseason from general manager Dan Morgan came when he recently released outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney, who was the team's sack leader in 2024.

Clowney was apparently taken completely off-guard by the move and he has since promised he is going to play well for one of the NFL's other 31 teams this year. As yet Clowney's market is still an unknown, but people in the know recognize that he's still a special talent.

According to NFL.com's list of the league's best 101 remaining free agents, Clowney makes the cut at No. 84.

"There were diminishing returns on Clowney in Carolina as a pass rusher for hire, but he can still help a team in a situational role."

We disagree over the diminishing returns part - Clowney was as disruptive as anyone could reasonably expect after Week 10 when he finally got some help.

Even if you don't think Clowney will ever reach double digit sacks in a season, it's foolish to think that Carolina's pass rush can absorb this loss when they had the lowest pressure rate in the league last year.

When bad NFL teams make a mistake it's usually the best that benefit. If that dynamic rings true here then either the Baltimore Ravens or the Philadelphia Eagles will probably wind up signing Clowney for some absurdly low cap number.

If Princely Umanmielen and Nic Scourton work out in the long run it won't be such a big deal, but the Panthers are going to miss Clowney in 2025.

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