Jadeveon Clowney, Seattle Seahawks. (Photo by Rob Leiter/Getty Images)
Jadeveon Clowney on the Cleveland Browns would be nightmare fuel for the AFC North.
Despite being the top defensive end entering 2020 NFL free agency, Jadeveon Clowney remains unsigned. The former No. 1 overall pick by the Houston Texans out of South Carolina back in 2014 spent last season with the Seattle Seahawks on a prove-it year that didn’t pan out. However, what if he lands on a new team like the Cleveland Browns? That would be absolutely terrifying.
On The Pat McAfee Show on Memorial Day, Yahoo’s Charles Robinson reported the Browns are the favorites to sign the former perennial Pro Bowl pass rusher with the Houston Texans. Given that McAfee played against Clowney on a rival team in the Indianapolis Colts, you could see how excited he got in his chair when Robinson dropped that nugget of knowledge on his program.
Despite never having a 10-sack season in his six years in the league, Clowney can be an incredible disruptive playmaker along any defensive line. He is at his best when he’s playing opposite of another great pass rusher. In Houston, he played opposite of J.J. Watt. Should Clowney go to the Browns, he’d be lined up opposite of Myles Garrett. So good luck with that, AFC North.
Jadeveon Clowney on the Cleveland Browns will terrify the rest of the AFC North.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but the Browns have as strong of a claim as anyone to winning the 2020 NFL offseason. They hired former Minnesota Vikings offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski and Philadelphia Eagles front office executive Andrew Berry as head coach and general manager, respectively. They drafted well and absolutely crushed it in free agency.
Whether it was signing tight end Austin Hooper or right tackle Jack Conklin, or drafting offensive tackle Jedrick Wills Jr. or defensive back Grant Delpit, the Browns just keep adding the necessary pieces to push for a playoff berth right away, especially in an expanded field. If the Browns used some of their available cap space to sign Clowney at a discount, this team will make the playoffs.
As is, Cleveland has the feel of a top-eight team in the AFC next year. The Browns will likely challenge the Pittsburgh Steelers for second place in the division, trailing only the Baltimore Ravens for divisional supremacy. With Clowney starring opposite of Garrett in 2020, this has the feel of the elite pass-rushing duo the Los Angeles Chargers have in Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram.
While the Browns will love adding Clowney, you know who will absolutely hate it? Lamar Jackson, Ben Roethlisberger and Joe Burrow. Jackson may have the wheels to escape a collapsing pocket, but now he has to avoid two high-end pass rushers. Roethlisberger is coming back from injury and has to deal with this now? Great. And poor Burrow. He’s a rookie on the worst team in the division.
Though placing this must emphasis on the move will only aid into it never living up to the hype, should Cleveland be the team that lands Clowney, anything short of a playoff berth this fall would be catastrophic disappointment. The Browns may be dysfunctional as all get-out, but how does a top-10 roster in football not make the playoffs in an expanded field? He makes them dangerous.
Clowney to Cleveland could be the impetus to get the Browns to the Super Bowl.