Report: Seahawks FA Clowney ‘hasn’t found the market he expected’

According to a recent report, the Seahawks could be in line to retain defensive end Jadeveon Clowney for a more team-friendly deal than initially anticipated.

Moore: Seahawks trending towards a poor D-line we’ve seen before

Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports that Clowney “hasn’t found the market he expected,” adding that the best offer Clowney receives could very well be from the Seahawks after all.

I'll give you what I can tell you on Clowney here: He hasn't found the market he expected. Could wind up the #Sehawks' offer is the best he'll get. https://t.co/Bn1ABfcdC6

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 18, 2020

The report is a little surprising, as Clowney was considered by most to be the best pass rusher in free agency.

With other top pass rushers like Yannick Ngakoue, Chris Jones and Shaquill Barrett all receiving the franchise tag from their respective teams, that left Clowney, a former No. 1 pick, as the top edge rusher on the open market.

Garafolo later added that Clowney is still going to receive a hefty paycheck, but it likely won’t be at or near the top of contracts dished out to premier edge rushers.

To be clear, he's in line to make a lot of money. But it sounds like his camp's expectations were at the top of the market, and they're not there. Not yet anyway. https://t.co/O1Gm5xwgRa

— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 18, 2020

Demarcus Lawerence of the Dallas Cowboys has the top contract of any NFL defensive end at $21 million per year, per Spotrac, and Chicago Bears outside linebacker/pass rusher Khalil Mack has the largest contract of any defensive player in the NFL at $23.5 million.

There were reports earlier in the offseason that Clowney and his camp would be seeking a record-setting deal, making him either the highest-paid or one of the the highest-paid defensive players in the league.

While he’ll almost certainly receive a large contract as Garafolo noted, it could be less than $20 million annually. It was thought that the Seahawks were hesitant to pay more than $18 million annually for Clowney.

Kevin Patra wrote a story for NFL.com on Garafolo’s report, and speculated that a reason why Clowney’s market could be down is because of the NFL’s restriction on conducting physicals due to the coronavirus. Clowney has a fairly long injury history, missing nearly all of his rookie season and missing contests and playing hurt in 2019 due to a core injury that required offseason surgery.

Additionally, Clowney’s market could me smaller than expected because of his lack of statistics.

Clowney is a disruptive force on the defensive line, but he has never recorded more double-digit sacks in a single season. He is regularly double-teamed, which causes some issues, but he still forces pressures, is very good against the run and he can single-handedly take over games, like he did in 2019 against the San Francisco 49ers in Week 10.

Also helping Seattle’s cause is two teams seen as contenders for Clowney, the Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants, have spent a lot of money on defense already. The Colts traded for DeForest Buckner and signed him to a lucrative long-term deal while the Giants have signed multiple starters and placed the franchise tag on defensive lineman Leonard Williams.

The 2020 league year kicks off Wednesday afternoon, and that’s when players can officially sign with new teams, so it wouldn’t be too surprising if Clowney makes his decision very soon.

Follow 710Sports.com’s Brandon Gustafson.

Huard: Hawks signing Reed ‘didn’t move me,’ priority must be Clowney

Follow @TheBGustafson