Jadeveon Clowney Finally Busts Out, Makes Seahawks Team to Fear

Clowney served as a one-man wrecking crew in Monday’s win in Santa Clara, and if this is a sign of things to come over the final two months of the season, the rest of the NFL has been put on notice.

Moments after stepping up to the podium following the Seahawks 27-24 overtime victory over the 49ers, a reporter asked Jadeveon Clowney to assess his performance.

“I could’ve done more,” Clowney quietly responded. “At the end of the day, I felt like I left some plays out there. I think I played a good game, but it could’ve been better. I could’ve made some more plays for my team and tried to force more turnovers.”

Following a dominant outing in which Clowney tormented San Francisco’s offensive line all night long, if the veteran defensive end is capable of playing even better, the rest of the NFC better watch out.

Ever since shipping a third-round pick and two reserve linebackers to the Texans for Clowney back on August 31, Seattle had been anxiously waiting for him to take his game to the next level. While the 26-year old had been more disruptive than his statistics indicated, the team knew it was only a matter of time until he exploded.

The breakthrough finally happened on Monday Night Football against the undefeated 49ers, who didn’t have an answer for Clowney regardless of his alignment along the defensive line. Even with starting tackles Joe Staley and Mike McGlinchey back in the lineup, he lived in the backfield all evening, single handedly destroying their game plan.

“Golly, what a fantastic football game he played,” coach Pete Carroll said. “He just was unblockable. He just continued to weave his way into the backfield and make plays, the run and the pass.”

After getting shaken up during the game’s opening drive and spending a few moments in the blue medical tent, Clowney returned to the field with a vengeance.

With the Seahawks trailing 10-0 on the scoreboard with three minutes left in the first half, defensive tackle Jarran Reed bullied his way into the backfield and strip sacked quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo. Clowney plucked the fumble off the turf and returned it 10 yards for a touchdown, swiftly trimming the deficit to three points.

Shortly after Seattle took its first lead midway through the third quarter on a touchdown pass from Russell Wilson to Jacob Hollister, Clowney came through with another critical turnover. Working against McGlinchey off the left side, he bull-rushed the former first-round pick into the backfield and punched the football out of Garoppolo’s hands.

Defensive tackle Poona Ford recovered the loose ball and the Seahawks capitalized again when running back Chris Carson powered his way into the end zone to extend the lead to 11 points.

By the time Jason Myers nailed a 40-yard field goal in the closing seconds of overtime to seal a monumental road victory for Seattle, Clowney had stuffed the sheet with five tackles, five quarterback hits, two tackles for loss, a sack, and a defensive touchdown. But even those numbers don’t illustrate his true dominance.

Pro Football Focus credited Clowney with a ridiculous 11 quarterback pressures, earning him an elite 90.7 game grade. He also helped blow up two runs on a late potential scoring drive by the 49ers in overtime, eventually leading to a missed field goal by Chase McLaughlin.

“I just thought he was so impressive all night long,” Carroll remarked. “I don’t know how they locked [him] up. They were tackling him. He was just penetrating so fast and so furiously, but what a fantastic game.”

The Seahawks would’ve loved to see Clowney emerge a bit earlier. But if he’s going to peak now, it couldn’t happen at a better time for a team with their sights set on winning a division title, clinching home field advantage, and contending for a Super Bowl championship.