Back in February, Jadeveon Clowney said that he would love it if the Falcons traded up from the sixth pick to select him in May’s draft.
He’ll have the chance to make the case in person next week. Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com reports that Clowney will visit with the Falcons as Atlanta tries to find defensive players who can help jolt their unit back to life after a subpar 2013 season.
The Falcons are meeting with several other players who could help on that front, which is probably a good thing because their chances of landing Clowney may not be great. Plenty of people think he’ll be off the board when the Texans hand in their top selection and neither they nor the Rams, who pick second, may be willing to pass up a chance at landing a player widely regarded as the most talented player in this year’s draft.
That leaves Atlanta to try to pay the heavy price it will take to get those teams to change their mind or move in a different direction come May 8. With tackles Greg Robinson and Jake Matthews on the radar as well as their defensive needs, the Falcons should be able to fill a hole even if Clowney’s desire to wind up in Atlanta winds up unfulfilled.