Though earlier this season the Texans were rumored to extend Clowney’s contract this offseason, the team has applied the franchise tag and hasn’t made any progress on the extension front. If the Texans were to deal Clowney, it could possibly be to secure Deshaun Watson with a healthy long-term contract moving forward.
Despite the former 2014 No. 1 overall pick not managing to secure a double-digit sack season yet, here are three teams that can use the former Pro Bowler right away.
Oakland Raiders
Earlier in the season head coach Jon Gruden managed to trade away Khalil Mack to the Chicago Bears. The trade made fans really consider if hiring him along with that huge contract was the right decision. The trade also seemed to have marked a question as to rather or not Gruden’s leadership and decision making as a coach is superb as many may think.
The Raiders by far is one of the worst ranked defenses in the league right now. They’ve only managed to total 13 sacks this season, which is beyond pitiful. But it does not seem to get any better for the Raiders as time progress and trading for a guy like Clowney could make up for everything else Gruden has seemed to screw up thus far.
San Francisco 49ers
The 49ers have been in search for a top outside pass-rusher for quite sometime now. The team came up short with trying to trade for Khalil Mack, but here is another opportunity for them as they need an additional piece to complement defensive end DeForest Buckner and his 12 sacks.
The team explored options in free agency, but the top pass-rushers seem to not have been on the market that matches their liking. The 49ers currently holds the rights to the No. 2 overall pick and can most certainly search for a pass-rusher in the draft, look for one in free agency, or trade for one. But will they?
Detroit Lions
Matt Patricia, former defensive coordinator for the New England Patriots, seems to have lost his defensive mindset within his first season as head coach for the Lions.
The Lions went from 9-7 (2017) to 6-10 (2019) in Patricia’s first year as head coach and a lot of that has to do with the defense.
Staying consistent has been a major problem to the teams failure. Putting pressure on the quarterback is a key point for the Lions, as they have allowed 22.5 points per game, which ranked 16th in the NFL. According to Pro Football Focus the Lions front seven was ranked second to last in the league.
In only playing eight games, Da’Shawn Hand has been quite a blessing so far for the Lions. And he hasn’t even been fully used in the offense just yet.
Clowney’s versatility and remarkable leadership could make a huge impact right away for the Lions.
After recently picking up the option on Clowney, the Texans might have to be absolutely blown away to consider seriously trading him away at this point.
