Jadeveon Clowney open to staying with the Browns

Cleveland Browns general manager spent two offseasons chasing defensive end Jadeveon Clowney before finally convincing the veteran defensive end to give the Browns a shot.

Clowney signed a one-year deal with Cleveland that is scheduled to have hit return to free agency after this season, but now that he has experienced life with the Browns, Clowney is open to staying with the Browns, he said on Friday (quote via a team-provided transcript):

“I would, but we have not talked about anything right now. We have a lot of guys on this team who are on a one-year deal, and they might be heading back or do not know what is going to happen in the future. Right now, it is just all about the next game, just trying to get through the season and doing what I can do for the team as of right now.”

Clowney has played in 12 of Cleveland’s 15 games this season, missing one with an injury and two while on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. His five sacks are second on the team to fellow defensive end Myles Garrett, and he has been a key member of a Cleveland defense that enters Monday night’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers having allowed more than 16 points just three times in the past nine games.

Clowney came off the COVID list earlier this week, and now with the Browns in a position where they have to win their final two games to have a shot at the playoffs, he is confident that the defense will be up to the task (quote via a team-provided transcript):

“I believe in our defense. I think we have one of the best defenses in the league. We play well together. We fly around. We just have to keep getting turnovers. That is what it is about in this league is getting the ball to the offense as much as possible and hope good things happen.”

The final chapter of Clowney’s tenure with the Browns has yet to be written. He hasn’t played for the same team in consecutive seasons since his final year with the Houston Texans in 2018, so having a level of comfort and continuity by staying with the Browns for a few more years might be appealing.

And if the interest is mutual from the Browns, Berry won’t have to look too hard to find Clowney when it comes time to talk contract.