Jadeveon Clowney was Browns best option all along

Jadeveon Clowney was always meant to be for the Browns

The Cleveland Browns finally landed Jadeveon Clowney after two offseasons of pursuing him, and it makes all the sense in the world. General manager Andrew Berry made it his priority to dramatically improve the defense in 2021, and that’s exactly what he’s done so far. Clowney is just the latest addition but is one that was always destined to happen, because he was always the best option.

Had Olivier Vernon not suffered a torn Achilles in Week 17, he likely would have been re-signed by the team. After dealing with some injuries early in the season, Vernon got healthy just as Myles Garrett started having issues with injuries and COVID-19 aftereffects, and played some of the best football of his career. He totaled 9.0 sacks over the second half of the campaign to go along with his great run defense. It’s a shame that he got hurt, and that his injury was so serious.

Vernon’s injury left the Browns with a massive need at EDGE2, one that wasn’t filled with the signing of Takk McKinley. McKinley is a very talented player, but he’s never played to his potential consistently in the NFL. He will provide good depth and speed on third downs, but he was never going to be relied upon as a starter.

The Browns were linked to the top rushers in this free agency class, such as Trey Hendrickson, Romeo Okwara, Bud Dupree, and Carl Lawson, but all four were given massive contracts by other teams, the likes of which Cleveland was never going to pay. Carlos Dunlap would have been a great option, but it seems like he was always deadset on returning to the Seattle Seahawks, and isn’t the versatile defender that Clowney is.

Clowney has been a relative disappointment since being the first overall pick in 2014. He’s never logged 10 sacks in a season, and has a lengthy injury history; he played eight games in 2020 before suffering a knee injury that required surgery. He lacks the bend and ankle flexibility needed to collect sacks along the arc. And in spite of all this, Clowney is still a very good player, one who is more than worth the $8 million ($10 million with incentives) contract he signed with the Browns.

Sacks aren’t a good way to judge how effective a pass-rusher is. Clowney doesn’t rack up sacks, but he gets double-teamed at an extremely high rate nonetheless. Opposing offenses clearly respect him, and that’s because he’s disruptive and versatile against both the run and the pass.

He’s a powerful, violent defender who makes explosive plays despite being the opponent’s top priority. Clowney can play essentially any spot along the defensive line, and is at his most dangerous when lined up inside against guards. He’s too explosive and strong to deal with, and his lack of bend is not an issue inside.

Clowney provides essentially everything that made Vernon so beloved; excellent run defense with quality pass rushing; Clowney just does it in a bigger, more explosive package with the ability to take over a game that Vernon simply lacked. Myles Garrett requires a double-team on essentially every play. The same apparently goes for Clowney:

It’s not feasible to double-team both players and account for both defensive tackles and any potential blitzers. This is the true benefit of adding Clowney; he’s a very good player in a vacuum, but his versatility and explosiveness will allow defensive coordinator Joe Woods to be creative with his fronts to throw opposing quarterbacks off-balance and out of sync.

Staying healthy will be key, but as long as Jadeveon Clowney is on the field, he gives the team options that none of the other pass-rushers on the market could offer.

He does it at a fantastic value compared to the other deals that were signed this offseason, and was always the target this team deserved and needed right now.