For Jadeveon Clowney, playing his original team in the playoffs is just ‘the next game up’
Jadeveon Clowney has played and beaten all four of his former teams this season. On Saturday, he will face his original team, the Houston Texans, for the second time this season in the divisional round of the playoffs.
The now 30-year-old edge rusher was selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Texans in 2014 and spent his first five seasons in Houston. Clowney was asked if it means anything to face the Texans again this Saturday.
“To me, it’s the next game up,” Clowney said. “I just want to win, because it’s the playoffs; it’s bigger than just worrying about the Texans. There is much more at stake. It’s either win or go home. And we want to get away with this win, so [that] we can keep fighting for the goal we’ve been fighting for all year. What you do all of this for is to try to get to that Super Bowl and win it.”
Clowney is having the best season of his career with the Ravens after bouncing around the league for many years after leaving Houston. Clowney’s 9.5 sacks this season tied his previous season high from 2017 as a member of the Texans, and his 71 pressures are a career-high.
With his 10th NFL season coming to a close soon, Clowney realizes how important every game is — especially in the playoffs.
“I’m in Year 10, and you never know how many more you’ve got left,” Clowney said. “I’ve been in the game 10 years and haven’t been this far; [I] haven’t won or gotten a bye – that first-round bye – ever. So, this is big for me and – in my career – where I’m at. I just hope [that] I can continue to help this team and help us get our long-term goal, [which] is to win a Super Bowl. And like I said, we’ve got to knock the Texans off just to do that.”
