There was a lot going on in the AFC South on Saturday night. In addition to Andrew Luck‘s shocking retirement announcement, reports surfaced that the Texans were likely to trade star edge defender Jadeveon Clowney in the next couple of days.

Those reports suggested that Houston is looking to acquire a wide receiver in a Clowney trade, but John McClain of the Houston Chronicle says that while he does expect Clowney to be dealt, he believes the Texans are going to swap him for an offensive tackle when he signs his franchise tender.

As we heard last night, Clowney does have some control over where he gets traded since he has to sign the tender before he can be moved. McClain thinks that head coach and de facto GM Bill O’Brien already has a deal worked out with another team, but the Texans and their trade partner just have to wait until Clowney puts pen to paper.

The O-line was the Texans’ biggest weakness in 2018, and while the club made some efforts to address that unit this offseason, it’s unclear whether the additions will result in a notable uptick in performance. But, with Luck out of the picture, the AFC South landscape has changed dramatically, and Houston now looks like the favorite to bring home the division crown. Given that, and since it’s clear the Texans are never going to sign Clowney to a long-term contract, it makes sense that Houston would want to get something of value for the former No. 1 overall pick before the season starts.

Of course, it’s fair to question whether losing Clowney on the defensive side of the ball will be worse for the team than rolling with their current group of O-lineman, but it seems that Houston is set on trading him. McClain believes the team should also ask for a running back in a trade in order to offset the loss of Lamar Miller, who tore his ACL in Saturday’s preseason game.

Things appear to be reaching a head between Jadeveon Clowney and the Texans. Clowney was franchise tagged earlier this offseason, and the two sides were unable to agree on a longterm extension. Clowney has been holding out all summer, and reportedly didn’t plan to show up until just before the start of the regular season.

There have been rumors that the Texans want to trade Clowney to ensure they get something for him, and those rumors are starting to heat up. Clowney “will be traded within the next 24-to-48 hours,” according to Michael Lombardi of The Athletic (Twitter video link), who adds that he would be “shocked” if he isn’t. Lombardi also reports that “there’s a lot of teams that are after him.”

As for what Houston is looking for in terms of compensation, Lombardi says that they’re looking to add a receiver to play opposite DeAndre Hopkins. The Texans already have a very solid group of pass-catchers with Hopkins, Will Fuller, and Keke Coutee, but they apparently aren’t satisfied. Fuller is coming off a torn ACL and Coutee is seemingly always hurt, so maybe that has something to do with their interest in another wideout.

Lombardi says he knows of two teams that are currently negotiating with Clowney to try to get him to agree to come to them. As he points out, Clowney has some leverage and control in trade talks since he has to sign his franchise tender before he can get traded. The former first overall pick is scheduled to make 15.967MM under the tag in 2019 after being classified as a linebacker, although there have been rumblings about a potential grievance being filed to get him classified as a defensive end.

Jadeveon Clowney has made it known he plans to return to the Texans before their first week of regular-season practice. The franchise-tagged edge defender will be back in August.

The sixth-year standout plans to report following Houston’s third preseason game, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (video link). Clowney will not play in the Texans’ fourth preseason contest but will get some extra work in with his teammates before suiting up in Week 1.

A previous report indicated Clowney would show up before the Texans’ regular-season opener against the Saints, but it looks like he will try to get a bit more work in before then. The Texans play their third preseason game Saturday, August 24, so they will be set to have their full team at practice between then and August 29.

As could be expected, the 26-year-old standout has worked his way into good shape on his own this offseason. He has remained in contact with Texans players and coaches, despite the team opting not to finalize an extension with him. Clowney has been extension-eligible since January 2017 but will still be without a long-term deal by season’s end. A grievance about Clowney’s tag amount (currently at the linebacker rate of $15.967MM) has also been rumored. But the Texans will nonetheless see their top J.J. Watt sidekick earlier than initially expected.

The Texans reportedly did not offer the former No. 1 overall pick a deal in line with those fellow franchise-tagged edge players DeMarcus Lawrence and Frank Clark received, and it was reported Bill O’Brien and since-fired GM Brian Gaine had a difference of opinion regarding a long-term Clowney contract. O’Brien was said to be against it.

Jadeveon Clowney and the Texans did not come to terms on a long-term pact prior to yesterday’s deadline, which means that Clowney will need to sign his franchise tender at some point and wait until next year to try to get his mega-deal. And according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (video link), Clowney is, as expected, shooting for a contract in line with those that other top pass rushers have signed this year, if not higher.

In other words, he is eyeing Frank Clark‘s five-year, $104.8MM deal with the Chiefs and Demarcus Lawrence‘s five-year, $105MM deal with the Cowboys as a baseline, but Schefter says that Houston has thus far been unwilling to match those contracts, let alone exceed them. It’s unclear just how far apart the two sides were when the deadline passed, but Sarah Barshop of ESPN.com suggests that the Texans are equally unlikely to pay market value for Clowney next year, even if he continues performing at a Pro Bowl level.

In Barshop’s estimation, that is a mistake. The advanced metrics loved Clowney in 2018, and although he has not yet tallied a double-digit sack campaign, he is a fearsome pass rusher and often absorbs double-teams as a result. He and J.J. Watt complement each other quite well in that regard, and Clowney is a talented run stopper as well. He has every reason to ask for a contract paying him at least $20MM per year, but if he gets it, it apparently won’t be from Houston.

We heard a few months ago that Clowney could be a trade candidate, but Schefter says there has been little interest around the league in trading for the former No. 1 overall pick. Interestingly, Schefter says the Texans would like to keep Clowney long-term, which doesn’t necessarily jibe with recent reports indicating that head coach and de facto GM Bill O’Brien is perfectly content going year-to-year with one of his biggest stars.

Barshop says the fact that Watt is making “only” $16.7MM per season could complicate matters, because if Clowney lands a $20MM+/year deal, Watt may want to revisit his own contract. The team will also need to pay Deshaun Watson big money soon, though Bashop notes that the Texans have enough cap space to keep everyone content. They just seem to have reservations about making a lengthy commitment to Clowney.

As members of the 2016 draft begin to sign extensions, 2014’s No. 1 overall pick is set to play yet another season without a long-term deal. And there will now be drama over Jadeveon Clowney‘s 2019 salary.

The NFLPA is expected to file a grievance against the Texans regarding Clowney’s franchise tag figure, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The Texans tagged Clowney as a linebacker, and that price comes in at $15.967MM — $1.698MM less than Clowney would have received on the defensive end tag.

The Texans paid Clowney just more than $1MM this year to resolve a dispute about his position as it related to his 2018 fifth-year option salary. Houston uses a 3-4 defense and deploys Clowney as a stand-up linebacker in base sets, but the college defensive lineman spends more time in three-point stances in sub-packages as a pro. The defensive line-linebacker split was roughly 60-40 in favor of a D-line role, Pro Football Focus’ Sam Monson tweets.

This has turned into quite the year for the Texans, who also fired their GM — one who was on board with a Clowney extension — and will not replace him until 2020. Clowney has hovered in extension limbo with the Texans for well over a year. Now, more back-and-forth will likely commence between he and the team that took him first overall five years ago.

The 3pm CT deadline for franchise-tagged players to sign extension came and went without a Jadeveon Clowney deal. He will play this season for $15.967MM.

While no agreement was expected, Clowney is now in a strange spot. The former No. 1 overall pick has been extension-eligible since January 2017 yet will play a sixth season without a long-term extension in place. As a result, the Texans should not expect to see him for a while.

Clowney is unlikely to show for “a good portion” of training camp, with Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweeting the Pro Bowl edge defender may not resurface in Texans gear until September. But he is expected to report before the Texans’ Sept. 9 opener against the Saints, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle reports.

As was the case with Le’Veon Bell last year, Clowney is going into his sixth season and has already accrued enough service time to be an unrestricted free agent. So, the August 6 reporting date will not affect the 26-year-old’s potential UFA path.

A reported disagreement between Bill O’Brien and since-fired GM Brian Gaine on Clowney’s value existed, with O’Brien being against a long-term deal for the former South Carolina prodigy. The Texans are going without a GM this season, but their reshuffled front office will have to deal with a disgruntled standout — one the team shopped in trades this offseason.

We heard earlier today that the Texans won’t be extending Jadeveon Clowney. The two sides aren’t going to reach a deal before the July 15th deadline, and Clowney will play the 2019 season under the franchise tag. 

After firing Brian Gaine and failing in their attempt to hire Nick Caserio away from the Patriots, the Texans were left without a general manager. It’s been unclear who is running things in the front office, although now we have a little more clarity that it’s head coach Bill O’Brien. Gaine and O’Brien “disagreed on whether to make a long-term commitment to” Clowney, a source told Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com.

There was a report right after Gaine was fired that his handling of the Clowney situation was partially responsible for his termination, but that suggested that Gaine was fired for not making progress on an extension. Now it seems like the opposite is true, and that it was Gaine who wanted to extend him all along.

Word leaking out that a head coach opposes a contract extension for a current player is sure to make things awkward in the locker room, and makes it more likely that this is Clowney’s last season with the team. The Texans are widely expected to make another run at Caserio once his contract expires following the 2020 draft, but they’ll need to make a decision on Clowney before then when free agency opens in March. O’Brien is likely to still be running the show then, and he clearly is hesitant to commit to Clowney for the future.

The first overall pick back in 2014, Clowney has blossomed into a great player, but the Texans don’t want to break the bank for him. A Pro Bowler each of the last three seasons, Clowney is likely looking to reset the market for pass-rushers yet again, and he’s been staying away from the team’s offseason activities while he held out for a new deal. The report from earlier today indicated he might miss a solid chunk of training camp, but that he’s expected to show up in time for the regular season.

Jadeveon Clowney won’t be getting an extension from the Texans. The two sides aren’t going to get a deal done before the July 15th deadline, sources told Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle (Twitter link).

That means that Clowney, the first overall pick back in 2014, will play the 2019 season under the franchise tag. The deadline for franchised players to get a new deal is in less than a week, and we hadn’t heard of much progress between the two sides, so this isn’t too shocking. While pushing for a new deal Clowney has been staying away from the team, and he didn’t attend the team’s mandatory minicamp last month.

Wilson reports that Clowney is “not expected to miss any games, but likely to miss at least a major portion of camp.” Clowney clearly isn’t too happy to be playing under the tag, and it sounds like he won’t be showing up until the last minute. After the Texans fired GM Brian Gaine, there were reports that his handling of the Clowney situation contributed to his firing.

The Texans are now in the unique situation of operating without a general manager. After they fired Gaine, they failed in their attempt to lure away Nick Caserio from the Patriots after New England filed tampering charges. Caserio’s contract is up after the 2020 draft, and the Texans are widely expected to make another run at him then. It’s possible that a new front office could be able to soothe things over with Clowney, but free agency will have come and gone by the time Caserio is out of his Patriots contract.

As of right now, it seems highly possible that this will be Clowney’s last season in a Texans uniform. Clowney has played very well, making the Pro Bowl each of the last three seasons, but Houston seems reluctant to reset the market and break the bank for him. In 15 games last year, Clowney had nine sacks, 16 tackles for loss, and three fumble recoveries.