Jadeveon Clowney #42 of the Dallas Cowboys
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Jadeveon Clowney #42 of the Dallas Cowboys
For Dallas Cowboys defensive end Jadeveon Clowney, the 2025 season took longer than expected to get rolling. Clowney had been waived by the Panthers in May in a cap-saving move, and despite a productive career that included three Pro Bowl selections and 58.0 sacks over 11 years, the former No. 1 overall pick did not drum up much training camp interest and wound up sitting out the summer.
It was not until the Cowboys came calling in the wake of the Micah Parsons trade that Clowney finally had himself a new team. And it worked out very well for both sides–despite playing only 13 games and staring six of them, Clowney led the team with 8.5 sacks, and improved as the season went on.
Clowney closed the season with 4.5 sacks in his final two games, with seven total tackles for a loss and a pass defended. That appeared to leave him set up for a return to Dallas in free agency this offseason. But when asked about that possibility, team COO Stephen Jones was hesitant to commit.
Cowboys Not Committed to Bringing Back Jadeveon Clowney
Jones spoke to reporters on Monday as the Cowboys are preparing for the week’s NFL draft combine. He was asked about a number of topics, and while he had previously expressed enthusiasm about re-signing running back Javonte Williams (which the Cowboys did this weekend) and franchise-tagging George Pickens (which they will do soon), Jones was notably on the fence about Clowney.
Jones emphasized that, after rebuilding the defensive coaching staff under new coordinator Christian Parker, the team is still getting a sense of how it will fill out the defensive roster. That may include Clowney. Or it may not.
“We’ve just got to see how all that works,” Jones said. “The other thing we’re going through, because our 100% focus has been on hiring the defensive staff, is now, what is their vision for every player? And how do the players that we’ve had here fit, and how do other players around the league that might be free fit? And how do players that we might acquire fit? All those are things that we’re really just now getting to … we had our first personnel meeting just last week. It’s a work in progress.”
‘This Is One of the Special Groups’
For his part, Clowney has said he will very much welcome a return to the Cowboys. He also made it clear that he would not sit out the offseason the way he did in 2025, insisting he is not going to spend the offseason, “on the couch.”
Clowney could be had at a reasonable cost on a one-year deal–Spotrac places his market value at $5.7 million. That would seem to be a good price given his production.
“A lot, I enjoyed this season more than I have in the past few years,” Clowney said. “It was a blast even though we didn’t win like we need to. I met a lot of great dudes in this locker room, man. Especially in the defensive line room, this is one of the special groups I have been with in my career, so I enjoy them guys.”