Guess what, Seahawks fans? Jadeveon Clowney is hitting free agency again

Alright, Seahawks fans. Take a deep breath. We’re really doing this again, at least this one time.

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We promise the 2021 offseason is not going to be the same as the 2020 offseason, and with Groundhog Day having passed earlier this week it’s understandable if you feel like you’re having an “I Got You Babe” moment right now, but it’s true: Jadeveon Clowney is going to be a free agent again, and, well, the Seahawks might have an opening.

Out of due diligence, 710 ESPN Seattle’s Jake and Stacy discussed the possibility – briefly – on Friday of Clowney reuniting with the Seahawks after a season with the Titans.

Last season wasn’t a great one for Clowney. After waiting until the end of training camp to sign with a new team, he joined Tennessee on a one-year deal reported to be worth $12 million. He played eight games through Week 10 then underwent season-ending knee surgery, leaving behind a pretty lackluster stat line – 19 combined tackles, six quarterback hits, four passes defensed, a forced fumble, and most alarmingly of all, no sacks.

So let’s get to brass tacks. Should the Seahawks consider bringing him back for 2021? Jake Heaps was pretty clear about his stance.

“Um… no,” Heaps responded. “Not with the price tag that he wants and the drama that will ensue. I don’t want Jadeveon Clowney just coming in right before the season, and that’s typically what he’s going to do. He has found that he does not like training camp.”

Good point. Not only did Clowney wait to sign until after training camp in 2020, but he held out of training camp while with Houston ahead of the 2019 season, then was acquired in a trade by the Seahawks with about a week to go until the season opener. Stacy Rost had an interesting point of her own about training camp, though.

“It sounds like it’s hard,” she quipped.

Alright, what else?

“I don’t want to deal with the Jadeveon Clowney drama unless it was just at an absolute bargain, but to be honest with you, I would rather bring back Benson Mayowa,” Heaps continued. “(With Mayowa) you can sign him in the offseason, he will be a part of your club and he will be a leader for you. I like what he brought to the table for this group.”

Related: Michael Bumpus on why the Seahawks must bring back Mayowa

Mayowa is also set to be an unrestricted free agent, and while he was considerably cheaper to acquire and had a part in Seattle’s pass rush rotation rather than a starring role, he proved to be the better rusher in 2020.

“I mean, Benson Mayowa got more sacks than Clowney. In fact, he got more sacks than Clowney the last two seasons,” Rost pointed out. Clowney has three sacks over the past two seasons, while Mayowa had six with Seattle last season and seven for the Raiders the year before that.

Clowney has proven in recent years that, for whatever reason, sacks aren’t a big part of his game, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t make an impact. It’s just probably not what the Seahawks will be looking for.

“I think Jadeveon Clowney can cause more havoc than Benson Mayowa,” Heaps said. “… Sacks and production, Benson Mayowa is a better player. You talk about overall disruptiveness, Clowney is still a very good player. That’s the crazy part of this conversation is why can’t this guy get sacks, because he generates quarterback pressures, he blows up an opponent’s run game extremely well. He’s an odd player. It’s hard to figure this guy out.

“If he doesn’t have to come in and be the lead guy, you feel a lot better about him. … I think he’s proven that he is not a leading pass rusher in this league.”

So there you have it. There may be six more weeks of winter, but it’s doubtful you’ll get six more months of Clowney talk in Seattle this year.

You can hear the full conversation in the Three Questions segment of Friday’s edition of Jake and Stacy in the podcast at this link or in the player below.

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