Former Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray spent half a decade in the SEC, which in many ways is the closest thing to an NFL minor league. Asked during a Tuesday appearance on NBCSN’s Pro Football Talk to identify the best player he has faced in the conference, Murray didn’t hesitate.
“Clowney, no doubt about it,” Murray said. “He’s a special player, a player you really have to game plan against. . . . He’ll really make you change things up, to be able to get two guys on him at all times, and being able to run away from him.”
Widely regarded as one of the best defensive prospects ever, Clowney has been dogged by concerns that he dogged it in 2013. The more we (or at least I) think about it, the more convinced we (or at least I) am that Clowney heard the chatter that he should sit out the season to avoid serious injury, and so he consequently began to worry about suffering a serious injury. Which in turn impacted the perception of his performance.
Once Clowney gets his first NFL contract, he won’t have that concern. And he’ll potentially be the force of nature he was in 2012. And anyone who passes on him a month from tonight may regret it.
Quickly. And repeatedly.