NY Jets reportedly have no interest in signing Jadeveon Clowney
By Justin Fried
The NY Jets reportedly have no interest in signing free-agent Jadeveon Clowney.
The NY Jets were relatively quiet in free agency this season as general manager Joe Douglas opted for a very different approach than most fans had become accustomed to.
In the Mike Maccagnan era, the Jets regularly were among the top spenders in free agency handing out massive amounts of money for players like Trumaine Johnson, Le’Veon Bell, and C.J Mosley — just to name a few.
But with Douglas, that mentality has clearly changed.
Instead of targeting some of the big names players on the market like Byron Jones and Jadeveon Clowney, the Jets steered clear and hunted for bargain deals.
But despite the team’s apparent lack of interest in Clowney back in the spring, rumors have picked up over the last few days that the Jets could make one last-ditch run at the talented edge rusher.
These rumors stemmed from a conversation new Jets safety Bradley McDougald had with Clowney in which the latter insisted he would be open to signing with Gang Green. Clowney allegedly told the Jets to “come get him.”
McDougald and Clowney were teammates together in Seattle and the veteran safety was clearly doing his best to spark a reunion in New York. However, fans likely shouldn’t be holding their breath.
NY Jets fans shouldn’t expect a Jadeveon Clowney signing anytime soon.
As ESPN’s Rich Cimini reported on Friday, despite McDougald’s recruiting, “the Jets have no interest in Clowney.”
This seems to be consistent with reports earlier in the year which stated that Clowney was simply asking for more than Douglas was willing to pay.
There’s no doubt that Clowney would provide a major boost to a Jets defense that just lost its best player. An elite run-defender, Clowney earned a phenomenal 87.3 grade from Pro Football Focus last season.
And despite managing only three sacks in 13 games last season, he was still given an excellent 79.1 pass-rush grade by PFF. Let’s not forget this is a player who totaled 18.5 sacks over the previous two seasons so it’s not as if he’s lacked in pass-rush production.
Clowney is an elite run-stopper and above-average pass-rusher. But it appears as though he’s either asking for too much or that Douglas simply doesn’t value him as much as many would assume.
Given the stagnation in his market, the former is most likely the case.
McDougald may be pushing hard for Clowney to come to New York, but it doesn’t appear as though the Jets are in any hurry to get a deal done.
And thus, one of the most talented edge defenders in the NFL remains a free agent as we enter August.