Jadeveon Clowney Update: Rumors About When He’ll Report To Texans

Certain news stories reach a point where you’ll believe any absurd twist or serpentine bend they may take. This story about Jadeveon Clowney is not one of those stories. This story is boring, exhausting, and needs to come to an end already.

After the sides were unable to agree to terms on a contract extension, the Texans franchise-tagged Jadeveon Clowney for the 2019 season. Since then, things have cooled off and gotten constipated. Clowney will either (1) play under the franchise tag after sitting out training camp (the most likely scenario if the team doesn’t come to a long term agreement with him before camp starts), (2) get traded for a first round pick that won’t help the team this year and/or a player who can’t help the team as much as Clowney will, or (3) both sides come to an agreement that results Clowney getting extended and happy, participating in training camp, and feeling ready to make opposing offenses pay when the 2019 season begins.

Former Houston Texan Cecil Shorts III (if she thinks Shorts III is a Texan and not a Jaguar, she’s too young for you), who probably has some inside information, made a report of his own. Sports Radio 610, where Shorts announced what he heard, posted the following:

While OTAs are a voluntary program, sources close to Clowney told SportsRadio 610’s Cecil Shorts that if a deal isn’t reached by the July 15 deadline, the Pro Bowl edge rusher is prepared to sit out until Week 1.

”We should not expect him until September,” said former Houston Texans wide receiver, Cecil Shorts.”That would be Week 1 of the regular season.”

“[The Texans] are offering him a long-term deal, from what I am hearing, it’s linebacker type money and [Clowney] wants a long-term deal with defensive end type of contract,” Cecil Shorts said. “That’s the biggest difference between the two sides, right now, is linebacker money and defensive end money. What does he think he should get and what are they offering.”

Clowney is in the right on this one. He’s a defensive end, not an outside linebacker, and really he can just be classified as an EDGE. If the Texans want to keep him around long term, haggling over $2-$4 million per year really doesn’t seem like it makes much sense.

Hopefully this all gets resolved soon, especially since Clowney was rusted and invisible until Week Four last season after missing all of training camp due to his recovery from offseason knee surgery. With the Texans’ upcoming schedule, they’ll need Clowney to contribute right away.