Clowney Moves on to Fourth Team in Four Years
Jadeveon Clowney decided not to play the waiting game this summer.
After a knee injury limited him to eight games played for the Tennessee Titans in 2020, the veteran defensive end agreed to a one-year contract with the Cleveland Browns on Wednesday, according to multiple reports. The deal reportedly is worth up to $10 million, a drop from the $13 million he earned in his one season with Tennessee.
Last summer, Cleveland pursued Clowney, who ultimately chose the Titans shortly before the regular-season opener at Denver.
Now, the Browns finally have him, which gives them a pair of No. 1 overall draft picks on their defense. Clowney was the first overall selection by Houston in 2014, and defensive end Myles Garrett was taken No. 1 by Cleveland in 2017. Garrett has 42 1/2 sacks in his career, including at least 10 in each of the last three seasons and now has another player who will attract attention from opposing offenses.
Clowney’s career-high is 9 1/2 sacks, set in 2017, and he did not get any for Tennessee. Even so, coaches and franchise officials repeatedly referred to him as a “disruptive” player for the defense before he was injured.
The Browns will be his fourth different team in as many seasons. After Houston, he played for Seattle in 2019 and with the Titans in 2020.
“Jadeveon did some good things for us last year before he got dinged with some disruptive plays,” general manager Jon Robinson said following the season. “The statistical piece might not have gleamed, but he was a disruptive player on the edge for us.”
Clowney is now the fourth member of the 2020 Titans to get a deal worth at least $10 million from another team in free agency. The New England Patriots signed tight end Jonnu Smith to a four-year, $50 million deal. Cornerback Adoreé Jackson got three years and $39 million from the New York Giants, and wide receiver Corey Davis got three years, $37 million from the New York Jets.
Tennessee effectively replaced Clowney when they signed Bud Dupree to a five-year, $82.5 million pact in the opening days of free agency.
