NFL Draft: 10 worst No. 1 overall picks
By John Buhler
Outside Linebacker. Houston Texans. Jadeveon Clowney. 10. player. 10.
In all fairness, this could be a bit premature since he has only played two seasons in the NFL, but Houston Texans outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney is well on his way to being one of the biggest busts in NFL history. His hype coming out of the University of South Carolina was too big for even the best of blue chip prospects.
Clowney played three years for the Gamecocks in the SEC and at times showcased unbelievable pass rushing and striking ability from defensive end. He was the No. 1 overall player in his high school graduating class in 2011 and elected to stay in-state and play for Steve Spurrier in Columbia.
His draft stock exploded after an earth-shattering hit Clowney made on a tailback against the Michigan Wolverines in the 2013 Outback Bowl in Tampa. From that point on, Clowney, then a sophomore at South Carolina, was going to wind up the No. 1 overall pick as soon as he was eligible to enter the draft after his junior season the next year.
What seemed strange about Clowney’s final season in Columbia was that it was undeniably a shell of what he did on the gridiron as a true sophomore. Clowney for lack of a better word seemed to mail it in for South Carolina in his final season with the Gamecocks.
His motor as a pass rusher became a point of serious debate for NFL scouts. Teams knew that he carried with him immense talent, but did Clowney really love the game of football or just wanted to receive paychecks?
He went to Houston No. 1 overall in the 2014 NFL Draft as a player that was to play alongside All-Pro defensive end J.J. Watt in the Texans’ vaunted 3-4 defense. Clowney was both not a great scheme fit in Houston’s 3-4 nor did he do a great job of staying healthy. In two years with the Texans, Clowney has played in 17 games with 4.5 quarterback sacks.
He could turn his career around, but a quarter of his fellow first round picks in the 2014 NFL Draft have already gone on to Pro Bowls. Outside of former Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel, there are few that have looked worse from the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft.
Next: 9. Tim Couch, Cleveland Browns, 1999