I’m a big fan of nostalgia. I like it almost every aspect of my life. If some pictures of me and my buddies back in high school float across my Facebook timeline, I smile. If bands like Chicago or Journey are playing within a 25 mile radius of my house, I shell out for the tickets. And yes, I like nostalgia in my sports.
This is why getting the following push notification on Sunday afternoon made me smile:
Indeed, what’s old is new, as former number one overall draft pick Jadeveon Clowney is signing a one year deal to return to the Houston Texans. The deal is reportedly worth up to $8 million, including incentives, and Clowney will reprise his old jersey number 90, so if you still own a Clowney jersey, dust it off!
Clowney, of course, was the first draft selection of the Bill O’Brien Era, back in 2014. In a draft where some Texans fans were hoping for a quarterback (Johnny Manziel, anyone?), the Texans opted for the physical freak, who was viewed at one time as a generational defensive prospect, in no small part because of this near decapitation of a Michigan player in a bowl game back in 2013:
The saga of Clowney’s first five-season stint with the Texans was very jagged. At the high points, he was one of the best edge defenders in the sport, making three Pro Bowls. At the low points, there were surgeries, injuries, and the underwhelming trade made by Bill O’Brien to send Clowney packing. This next chapter is hopefully one of redemption. Here a few other thoughts on this major development:
Football-wise, this is as close to a perfect signing as it gets
The Texans have two of the best half dozen edge rushers in the league in Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter, but the depth behind them has been a mild concern throughout the offseason. The Texans could not have done better than bringing Clowney back on a one-year, hometown deal. Clowney can play on early downs, because he is an outstanding run defender, and while he’s never had a double digit sack season in his career, he still brings way more pressure than your average backup defensive end. In short, if Hunter or Anderson ever had to miss a game or two, Clowney can more than hold his own and allow the Texans to maintain their unparalleled, front to back, defensive synergy.
You might be saying “Hey, wasn’t Clowney run out of here back in 2019?”
This is where resetting history needs to happen. By the time Clowney finished out his rookie deal in 2018, it was pretty evident that O’Brien was not a fan of Clowney, despite the productivity. For whatever reason, Clowney just wasn’t an “O’Brien Guy.” This is why they only offered Clowney a franchise tag, and this is why O’Brien shipped Clowney out for a third round pick in 2019, right before the season. Given the facts that (a) Clowney has managed to hang around for 12 productive seasons, and (b) O’Brien was fired roughly a year later, history seems to favor Clowney. It’s worth noting that Clowney has gone out of his way to mention how he’s more mature now and how excited he is to help lead young players. This is likely a more mature version of Clowney.
For the “Now, bring back DeAndre Hopkins!” crowd
Hey, like I said, I’m a huge nostalgia guy! If Caserio wants to keep getting the band back together, even with band members who were gone long before he arrived here in 2021, who am I to say “NO!”? For those of you out there, though, whose gut reaction to the Clowney signing was “Hey, Nick! Now do D-Hop!”, it appears that Hopkins is chasing another passion, which might deserve its own article. After visiting Mike Vrabel and the Patriots in camp last week to learn more about coaching, Hopkins is taking a job as assistant wide receivers coach at Georgia Tech, where he will be reunited with George Goosey, the Tech offensive coordinator, and the offensive coordinator of the Texans in 2015 and 2016. It will be interesting to see how this goes with Hopkins, who was a hard worker but not a frequent practice participant in his time in Houston.
