By Ron Wynn
NASHVILLE, TN — The Titans’ hopes for adding free agent pass rusher Jadevon Clowney to their lineup haven’t changed. There’s been no progress made in getting him signed, and according to most reports, he’s not going to make a decision anytime soon. Most players have reported to training camp now, but Clowney remains unsigned.
The need for Clowney was already high, as the Titans traded one of their top pass rushers from last season Jurrell Casey. Plus a free agent that they have signed specifically to address that need has yet to appear in camp. Former Atlanta Falcons’ defensive end Vic Beasley, who signed a one-year, $9.5 million deal with the team in March, was placed on the reserve-did not report list on both last Tuesday and Wednesday. Titans general manager Jon Robinson released a statement last week saying that, “I have been in contact with Vic, he is not here, he understands his absence is unexecused, and he told me he will be reporting to camp in the near future.”
There is speculation that the absence was related to a death in Beasley’s family, but there’s been no public statement from either Beasley or the Titans regarding that. But what the Titans are hoping for most is a return to his 2016 form, when he led the NFL with 15.5 sacks. The 2015 first round draft choice has had 37.5 sacks over his five year career.
Meanwhile, the additional hope is Clowney can be convinced to join the Titans, even if it’s only on a one-year deal. The pass rush was the primary defensive weakness the team wanted to address in the off-season. They no doubt felt they had with the Beasley signing, and hoped for a bonus with the possible acquisition of Clowney.
But thus far, neither has occurred. With there being no preseason in 2020 due to the pandemic, there’s much more emphasis on practice sessions, and new team members getting acclimated during camp. The Titans hope at least one and possibly both of those players will join the team as soon as possible.
