Cleveland Browns: 5 replacements for Jadeveon Clowney in free agency
By Randy Gurzi
Cleveland Browns replacement No. 4: Solomon Thomas
Another first-round pick that Cleveland could look at in the coming offseason is Solomon Thomas, who spent the 2021 campaign with the Las Vegas Raiders. Thomas was originally taken third overall out of Stanford in 2017 and spent the first four seasons of his career with the San Francisco 49ers.
He never lived up to his draft status and ended his time there with 95 tackles and just six sacks. He then joined Las Vegas looking for a fresh start and proved to be a valuable member of their defensive line rotation. Thomas played in all 17 games and while he had no starts, he did record 34 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and had 17 pressures.
Where Thomas stands out from other defensive end prospects is his power. He’s listed at 6-foot-3 and 280-pounds and he’s able to bully people at the line, which causes a lot of disruption. That’s been Jadeveon Clowney’s ticket to fame and while Thomas isn’t close to the same caliber as Clowney, he can provide some of that beef on the edge of the line.
He’s also capable of sliding inside and playing some 3-tech on passing situations. Thomas could also come affordably given the fact that he has never become a huge star and is seen as a rotational piece.