Houston Texans Rumors: Why Jadeveon Clowney should be tagged then traded

Why Jadeveon Clowney should be traded

Why on earth would the Houston Texans want to trade such a solid player and contributor? Most teams wouldn’t question retaining a player just entering the peak of their prime. Keeping them would be a no-brainer. So, I know what I’m proposing seems to defy logic but, believe it or not, agree with it or not, there is a rhyme and reason to this.

If the Texans were 100% certain that Clowney was the future face and star of this defense, he would have been locked up by now and they would have had no qualms paying him any amount of money this past offseason. If they weren’t, I’m not convinced this season convinced them of that, which is why I believe he’ll be tagged.

But, let’s get back to why he should be traded (something my colleague Brian broke down previously). Clowney is still very young and likely still has a lot of years of great football in front of him. He is still extremely talented and can anchor a defensive front in any system he’s put in. Those qualities would make him highly sought after on the trade market. Team’s are constantly looking for elite pass rushers as they’re few and far in between.

Clowney hasn’t quite reached that elite level yet but he’s had enough production and there’s enough potential for teams to believe it’s possible. Clowney’s lifetime comparison mate, Khalil Mack, showed what an elite pass rusher can fetch on the trade market. Now, Clowney isn’t on Mack’s level but he could still demand a haul.

As I mentioned earlier, there are a lot of teams who should be interested in Clowney. So, the Texans should be able to get a lot of draft capital for him. The Texans, as good as they’ve been, still have a lot of holes and positions they could improve at and the draft is a great place to do that.

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Brian Gaine had a phenomenal first draft and he should try to get as much draft capital as possible for his second draft. One place he could look at for draft capital is actually Mack’s old team, the Raiders. They have three first-round selections this year, though, two are likely a lot lower than they expected.

One area the Raiders need to improve at is pass rush (after they created a huge hole there). They’re likely not going to get the first overall pick which means they likely won’t get Nick Bosa and after him, there is a major drop off. So, they could be convinced to swap some picks for a guy like Clowney and we already know Jon Gruden is crazy enough to do it.

If the Texans could snag those two first round picks or a first and second off of the Raiders, they’d have five picks in the first two rounds. You can plug a ton of holes with that kind of capital, including finding a guy to replace Clowney. They could also package picks to go get a guy they love, maybe an offensive tackle.

Even if the Texans had to add a second rounder to get two firsts and say a third or a fourth-round pick, it would be worth it, especially since they have two seconds already (one from the Duane Brown deal). All I’m saying is there is too much potential for tremendous gain across the board if they’re able to tag and trade Clowney. It’s a no-brainer.

Trading Clowney doesn’t seem to make sense on paper but the more you think about it the more sense it makes. This is exactly the type of move forward-thinking, elite teams make. A trade like this with this potential haul could set the franchise up to contend for Super Bowls for years to come. The Houston Texans need to make it happen.