Houston Texans Need Jadeveon Clowney to Reach Potential

The Houston Texans suffered some horrific news about J.J. Watt, who had back surgery. Can someone step up to replace him?

Defensive end J.J. Watt has been one of the best players in the NFL for the Houston Texans, but recent news of him needing back surgery is not what the organization wanted to hear. Even though Watt is one of the toughest players in the NFL, a back surgery can be very complicated to return from.

Since being drafted with the 11th overall pick, Watt has become the unanimous best defense end in the entire NFL. Watt has some impressive career accolades already, as he has been selected to the Pro Bowl four times, and has been the Defensive Player of the Year three times.

In five seasons, Watt has totaled 74.5 sacks, 15 forced fumbles, and one interception. The timetable for Watt’s return is right around Week 1, but it will be hard to predict how effective he will be right away. While it is impossible to replace his production, the Texans do have another very talented player on the defensive side of the ball.

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With the first overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, the Texans attempted to create a great duo of Watt and Jadeveon Clowney to lead their defense for years to come. The combination of the two was created to help the Texans get past Andrew Luck and the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South. After a great career in college, Clowney came into the NFL with a lot of expectations to be one of the best pass-rushers that we have seen in decades.

Clowney’s career did not get off to a good start with Houston, as injuries cost him nearly his entire rookie season. Injuries for rookies are never a good thing, as the transition to the NFL can be overwhelming even for the best prospects in college.

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After a really disappointing rookie season, Clowney was a bit better in 2015 for the Texans, as he was able to play in 13 games. We did begin to see some glimpses of what Clowney could be in the NFL, as he totaled 4.5 sacks in what was essentially his rookie season.

With the status of Watt for the beginning of the season being very hard to predict right now, the Texans will be relying on Clowney to finally live up to his expectations out of college. The most important thing for Clowney will be able to stay healthy throughout the offseason and be healthy at the beginning of the season. The Texans’ defense will be taking a big hit if Watt misses time during the regular season, but Clowney is a player with the potential to carry a defense.

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As of now, Clowney is healthy and is motivated to put a disappointing start to his NFL career in the rearview mirror. With Watt out, Clowney might be getting more attention from offensive linemen, but he can help the Texans immensely if he becomes a threat as a pass-rusher.