Clowney-Watt combination is ‘starting to look special’
Disruptive forces finally healthy at the same time
A quick-twitch nightmare just keeps unfolding, replayed again and again in haunting technicolor during film sessions across the league.
The offensive backfield has become a danger zone for quarterbacks when squaring off against the Texans’ ultra-dangerous bookend pass rushing tandem of end J.J. Watt and linebacker Jadeveon Clowney.
Watt and Clowney are converging on quarterbacks at a rate fast enough to trigger alarms for coaches and a healthy dose of fear for quarterbacks.
“They’re horrible to go against, put it that way,” Miami Dolphins coach Adam Gase said. “They’re fast. They penetrate. It’s like a hand grenade goes off in the backfield.”
Between the combined bull rushes and speed off the edge of Watt and Clowney, it’s a bear of a blocking assignment for opponents. Heading into a Thursday night game against the Dolphins, Watt and Clowney have combined for 11½ sacks, 22 quarterback hits, four forced fumbles, 17 tackles for losses and one touchdown.
“They’re explosive guys,” Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel said. “They’ve got good size, got good length and good talent. Sometimes, it is somewhat explosive.”
Romeo has seen best
Crennel was reluctant to compare Watt and Clowney to any of the players he’s been around in his four decades of coaching. That includes the likes of past New York Giants star linebackers Lawrence Taylor, Carl Banks and Harry Carson.
“Only time will tell that,” Crennel said when asked if Watt and Clowney will reach those defensive heights. “Usually you don’t get that kind of talent together in one coaching career. So, I’ve been very fortunate to have both of them and play at the level they play at because that really helps us.”
This is the kind of disruptiveness the Texans envisioned when they drafted Clowney with the top overall pick of the 2014 draft to pair him with Watt, a threetime NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
Clowney is coming off one of the best games of his career. During a win over Jacksonville on Sunday, Clowney recorded seven solo tackles, two sacks, two tackles for losses, four quarterback hits and one fumble recovery.
“Anytime you have a guy like that who can destroy a game like that, it’s hard,” Texans cornerback Johnathan Joseph said. “With him and J.J. out there, we haven't seen those guys play a full season together. It's starting to look special.”
Watt has been resurgent in his return from a broken leg suffered last year. He leads the Texans with seven sacks and has eight tackles for losses, 12 quarterback hits and four forced fumbles.
“Obviously, when we’re playing at the top of our game, there’s a lot of great things that happen — all over our defense, not just up front,” Watt said. “When everybody’s playing at the top of their game, it’s a lot of fun to play in and I’m sure it’s pretty difficult to stop. It’s a blast. We have guys all over the place that can play, and it’s a lot of fun to play the game when you do that.”
Playing under a $12.306 million fifth-year club option, Clowney is trying to prove he’s worthy of a blockbuster contract extension.
The way he played this past week has drawn plenty of praise, including a gushing film review from NFL Network analyst and former NFL offensive lineman Brian Baldinger.
“I’m glad he noticed,” Clowney said. “I mean, you have to keep bringing it. This league is about bettering on your reputation, not staying the same.”
Whether Watt and Clowney are healthy is the biggest caveat surrounding one of the most talented pass-rushing and run-stopping combinations in the league.
Watt played in just eight games and had 1½ sacks combined in 2016 and 2017 because of back and leg injuries.
Clowney underwent microfracture knee surgery at the start of his career and got off to a slow start this season after a limited offseason and preseason due to arthroscopic knee surgery.
“Health has always been a big deal with him because he’s pretty good,” Crennel said of Clowney. “That’s why he was taken No. 1. When he’s healthy, we expect No. 1 production from him, and he’s been able to give that to us.”
Clowney has nine tackles for losses overall and 4½ sacks. He has 46 tackles for losses in the past 36 games, second only to Arizona Cardinals linebacker Chandler Jones during that span.
Blowing up plays
The hand grenade analogy from Gase resonated with Clowney.
“That’s what we’re trying to shoot for,” Clowney said. “That’s what our job is. They pay us to come and disrupt games and get after the quarterback and make plays. The guys on this team look up to us to do that, so we have to do it each week.
“We have so many players up front that can disrupt games. I know you can’t just sit there and say, ‘We’re going to game plan for Clowney,’ when you have J.J, Whitney (Mercilus), Benardrick (McKinney) and D.J. (Reader). You have to really just pick your poison.”