Cleveland Browns: What’s so great about Jadeveon Clowney?
The Kharma is just bad for Jadeveon Clowney and the Cleveland Browns
Just the mention of the name of Jadeveon Clowney is supposed to send NFL front offices into a tizzy, and so the Cleveland Browns are once again courting Jadeveon Clowney, hoping against forlorn hope to convince him to become a Cleveland Brownie.
What we were told last year was that Clowney had turned down a superior offer from Cleveland in order to sign with the Tennessee Titans at $13 million per season.
Initially, Clowney was looking for a multi-year deal at $20 million per year. Cleveland came closest to meeting his demands, according to ESPN’s highly respected Adam Schefter, reportedly at around $16 million per year (not worth it).
When Covid-19 hit and it became clear that revenues — and the salary cap along with it — were going to tank, Clowney wound up taking a single-year deal for $13 million from Tennessee. Then he fired his agent, Bus Cook for his trouble.
"“I think they’ve been the most aggressive team with him financially. I just think he has balked at going to Cleveland for whatever reason. I think he’s been hesitant to go because if he wasn’t he would have gone already because it’s the most money. It’s the richest offer on the table and he hasn’t taken it. Why is that? I don’t know. Is that not wanting to be in that city? Is that a lack of belief in the organization? I don’t know what it is. There’s no doubt that Cleveland has offered the most money to date. For whatever reason he has not been willing to take it so far. That doesn’t mean that it couldn’t change, but it hasn’t changed just yet,” — Adam Schefter, appearing on ESPN 850, The Next Level, May 27, 2020."
Cook, by the way, is the same top-notch agent who negotiated a fine deal for Myles Garrett, so it’s not like he’s incompetent. Every indication is that Clowney has impossibly high expectations for how he should be treated, at least in terms of monetary compensation. Does it extend to other parts of his professional ethics as well?
The reasons why the Browns like Clowney are obvious. Clowney is an incredible athlete, similar to Garrett in some respects. He blew away the Combine with a 4.53-second 40-yard dash, an insane time for a big man. This is what the team needs to get after Lamar Jackson, who is the most dangerous dual-threat quarterback in NFL history, at least in this analyst’s opinion. He has far surpassed the season totals of even Michael Vick. Because the Ravens reside in the AFC North with the Browns, they need speed and talent upfront to contain this guy as well as some moxie to slow down the other Ravens runners.
Clowney has bemoaned the fact that he is constantly doubled-teamed. Well, brother, we have just the cure for that in Cleveland. His name is Myles Garrett, and he is so dangerous that you may never see a double team again in your entire career if you were to come to Cleveland. Readers, do you believe an offensive coordinator is going to double team Clowney instead of Garrett? To paraphrase Monty Python, “I laugh in your general direction.”
However, whether the football skills are enough to overcome the human factors is dubious. If the Browns are going to blow the rest of the Sashi Brown Memorial fund (half of which was blown by John Dorsey for the 2019 Super Bowl run that did not quite happen), it has to be for someone that the organization has confidence in.
If Clowney cannot work with Myles Garrett’s agent and does not like the Browns organization for some unknown reason, you have to suspect that there might be a problem somewhere. So who can he get along with? Not his agent, not the ball club, so who? Is he going to get along with the coaching staff? Are you sure will not be jealous of Myles Garrett and his big contract, negotiated by the agent who Clowney fired? Kharma is a real thing and Kharma does not feel right for this situation.
This analyst has confidence that Jadeveon Clowney can run fast. Very little confidence that he will step up and be the 100 percent dedicated player that the Browns need. Several DPD authors have taken up sides on this issue. This writer would like to side with the naysayers this time.
Next. 20 most disappointing Cleveland QBs of all-time. dark
Yes, he’s an impressive athlete. But no, he would not look good in orange and brown, despite the fact that “Clowney the Brownie” sounds so good in the headlines.