Vikings coach who quietly chased Jadeveon Clowney might finally get his shot

Before he was cut by the Carolina Panthers on Thursday, Pro Bowl edge rusher Jadeveon Clowney was once pursued by current Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores.

Back in 2019, Flores was the head coach of the Miami Dolphins, and he wanted his team to make a trade for Clowney, who was a member of the Houston Texans at the time. Unfortunately for Flores, the Dolphins were unable to work out a trade to land the veteran pass rusher, and he was sent to the Seattle Seahawks instead.

Now that Clowney is free to sign with any team, though, will Flores want the Vikings to attempt to add the former No. 1 overall draft pick to his current group of pass rushers?

Would Jadeveon Clowney even be a good fit with the Minnesota Vikings?

Despite the fact that Clowney just turned 32 in February, he's still been able to perform at a high level in his last few NFL seasons.

With Carolina last year, his overall PFF defensive grade ranked 34th out of 119 qualifying edge rushers, and his 14.9 percent pass-rushing win rate would've ranked second among all Minnesota defenders in 2024, behind only Jonathan Greenard's win rate of 15.2.

So, there's no question that Clowney can still be effective out on the field. The problem with the Vikings is that they might not be able to give him the amount of snaps next season that he's looking for.

Minnesota's group of edge rushers already includes Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, and Dallas Turner, and while Clowney might be an incredible tool for Flores to use in his defense, he's probably not interested in being part of a pass-rushing rotation at this point in his career.

But if there's any indication at all that he actually would be willing to take on more of a situational role, then the Vikings should be doing whatever they can to get Clowney in a purple and gold jersey before next season.