Jadeveon Clowney and Antonio Brown: 2 players Ravens should ignore

The Baltimore Ravens are not done making moves this offseason. Some moves could be in the works, most likely after the 2021 NFL Draft. There are two high-profile free agents the Ravens should ignore. It seems like we never stopped talking about them for the past two years. That in itself should tell you something.

Let’s dive into why the Ravens shouldn’t sign Jadeveon Clowney or Antonio Brown this offseason. Let’s start with Clowney.

Why the Ravens shouldn’t sign Jadeveon Clowney:

Jadeveon Clowney is a big-name free agent, though he wouldn’t necessarily make a big impact. Clowney didn’t have a single sack for the Tennessee Titans in 2020. The Titans made the move fans were hoping the Ravens would do and it didn’t work out for Tennessee. Clowney spent half the season on injured reserve. Ravens fans would have been wildly frustrated if Eric DeCosta signed Clowney and that’s what would have happened.

Clowney had three sacks in the 2019 season with the Seattle Seahawks. Clowney only started 11 games for Seattle. Clowney has never had a double-digit sack season and he has an injury history that is starting to become a red flag.

Signing Clowney might not even be that expensive of a proposition anymore. When the Seahawks got him in 2019 it was a big deal. When the Titans got him it felt like it was one. Clowney is looking for his third team in three years. In two offseasons in a row, Clowney has been available after the first several waves of free agency.

At this point, it’s hard to be very excited about Clowney. Clowney could have a career resurgence, however, are you going to wait for it? Are you signing up for that?

Justin Houston is coming off a couple of strong years with the Indianapolis Colts. Ryan Kerrigan isn’t what he used to be and he has been plagued by injuries. Melvin Ingram has injury concerns as well. If you’re going to make a guess based on track records, Clowney’s not your free agent.

Clowney isn’t the best option. Signing Clowney doesn’t mean the Ravens wouldn’t still have major concerns around their pass rushers. It’s just not something I would be interested in if I was Mr. DeCosta.

Why the Ravens shouldn’t sign Antonio Brown:

Once the Ravens signed Sammy Watkins, free agency was all but done for wide receivers in Baltimore. The Ravens have been linked to Antonio Brown forever. If they were going to sign Marquise Brown‘s cousin, they would have done it already. Jackson and his favorite receiver working out with Antonio Brown just isn’t a compelling enough reason to bring in Brown.

Brown has been in the middle of a lot of bad situations. We don’t need to dive into details, because you already know. Brown has been very close to the center of attention in the NFL for a while now. It was just three seasons ago that Brown caught over 100 passes for the Pittsburgh Steelers. It feels like ten years ago, doesn’t it?

Since then Brown has been traded to the Las Vegas Raiders. He quickly worked his way to getting cut by the Raiders after drama piled up before the season even started. He caught four passes for the New England Patriots in the 2019 season before being released. Brown won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. His 45 reception season was a nice bounce back.

You have to hope that Brown keeps going on the right track however it’s hard to feel comfortable signing him if you’re the Ravens. If Tom Brady wants him back in Tampa Bay, that’s great. Hopefully, Brown continues to thrive and stays problem-free.

The Ravens obviously don’t feel comfortable with it. If they were going to do it, they would have done it. The Ravens signed Watkins, that was their move in free agency for the wide receiver position. They can still draft a receiver or two. They have Devin Duvernay and James Proche to continue to develop. Things are moving in the right direction.

Even if Brown ended up working out for the Ravens, adding him would be a distraction that would take over the offseason. The second training camp would come around it would be all about Antonio Brown as far as the media was concerned.

There was a time where giving Brown a second chance made a bit of sense. The reward could be huge if he goes back to playing like one of the top players in the whole league. At this point, the risk makes less sense than ever.

There are moves the Ravens can make and justify easily. These aren’t two of them.