Seahawks Adding Another Stud DL for Cheap Means They Shouldn't Waste Money on Jadeveon Clowney
By Mark Powell
Jadeveon Clowney remains on the open market, and it looks like the Seattle Seahawks are moving on without him.
On Wednesday night, the Hawks brought in their second defensive lineman of the offseason in Benson Mayowa. As his stats suggest, he's an underrated asset as it pertains to putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
Benson Mayowa posted career highs in hurries (18), pressures (27) and sacks (7) in 2019.
— Alistair Corp (@byAlistairCorp) April 1, 2020
Seahawks are yet to add (or re-sign) the blue chip pass rusher they need, but between Mayowa and Irvin, they're signing rushers who should produce consistently as a part of the DL rotation.
Clowney should insinuate this means his time in Seattle is over with. His contract demands were far too high to begin with, and even as those expectations slowly decrease, the Hawks need not ruin their cap situation by overspending on an injury-prone pass-rusher. Leave that to teams like the Jets, not franchises hoping to reach football's mountaintop.
Benson Mayowa finished 21st in pressure rate among DEs in 2019 (minimum 200 rushes) at 12.4.
— Alistair Corp (@byAlistairCorp) April 1, 2020
He was one of 12 DEs in the NFL to have a pressure rate above 12 and register 7+ sacks last season, per SIS.
With Mayowa, along with Bruce Irvin returning to where it all began, the Seahawks have added 15.5 sacks to their defensive line. Clowney, meanwhile, had just 3 sacks last season. It's just smart business.
John Schneider is saying all the right things about a Clowney return, and surely adding him to this now-improved bunch would make the Hawks a force defensively. Thankfully, however, signing Clowney is so longer a must for the Seahawks.
Nothing to see here, just solid team management.