The NFL season is now only a few weeks away from kicking off, and the best pass-rusher on the free-agent market still remains unsigned.
And while that statement sounds a bit crazy at first glance, it’s actually not when we think about Jadeveon Clowney’s past history — specifically how he avoids showing up to training camp. It’s unclear if he doesn’t like the feel of being surrounded by people in a college-type environment, or all the practices and hard work that come along with it, but for whatever reason, Clowney avoids camp whenever possible. He’s held out on his contract in the past, as well as nursed injuries that didn’t seem to be enough to keep him out.
But training camps will be coming to a close in the near future, so this may be the time when Clowney makes his move and signs with a team.
Sure enough, the rumors linking him to the Ravens are really heating up, as Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic recently noted that the team has been monitoring the situation in speaking with Clowney’s camp.
It’s interesting to note that the Ravens only have roughly $13 million in cap space, so that $15-17 million that Clowney was initially seeking for one year likely isn’t happening. He may be forced to settle for half that, but he’d have the benefit of playing for a world-class organization, on a defensive line loaded with talent, which would clearly help his production, and could help him land the long-term contract he seeks next year.