MMQB Looks At Jadeveon Clowney, Khalil Mack, How They Got To The NFL, And Where They Are Now

MMQB’s Robert Klemko has written an article that’s sure to get the portion of the Texans’ fan base that believes the team erred in drafting Jadeveon Clowney with the first overall pick of the 2014 NFL Draft riled up all over again. Klemko examines the different paths that brought Clowney and the player he’ll always be compared to, Khalil Mack, to the NFL and discusses the outlooks for both players as they begin the third season of their professional careers. The focus of the piece is on how Mack, an unheralded recruit who played collegiately at little-known University of Buffalo, has managed to work himself into one of the best defensive players in the NFL, while Clowney, who had been considered a can’t-miss prospect since high school, has found the going much tougher since he left South Carolina, due at least in part to the fact that Clowney never had to truly work at his craft until he entered the NFL.

There’s some really good stuff in there about both players’ backgrounds and the events leading up to the 2014 NFL Draft that I hadn’t seen or heard before, so I highly recommend you give it a read. Klemko closes the piece by asking each player what might have happened if their roles have been reversed.

What if, Khalil Mack, you had been more highly touted? If you had gone to Alabama, Miami or Florida, do you think you would’ve gotten here?

"That’s a tough question, man. Honestly, knowing the work ethic that I have and knowing how competitive I am, it’s easy to say, yes. But in those situations you can get comfortable going to those big schools, eating good, getting things that work in your favor."

And what if, Jadeveon Clowney, you had been a one- or two-star recruit and walked on at some small school?

"I’d still be a bad mother------."

If you have a few minutes, read the article and then share your reaction in the Comments.

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