The Cleveland Browns made a big splash on the free agent market Wednesday. The Steelers barely made a ripple.
Each team signed a defensive player. One of them has 18 tackles for loss and 5 1/2 sacks in 28 games over the past two seasons. The other has 11 tackles for loss and three sacks in 21 games.
The catch, of course, is that Vince Williams, the guy the Steelers signed, has the superior numbers. I’m not suggesting that makes him a more impactful player than Jadeveon Clowney, a defensive end still looking for his first double-digit sack season since the Houston Texans drafted him first overall in 2014.
I’m just reporting the facts.
Maybe Clowney, who had more knee surgeries (one) than sacks (none) last year in Tennessee, will return to his disruptive ways. And he can be very disruptive. He sets a mean edge against the run and will help the Browns if he’s healthy and stays that way, despite multiple surgeries on his left knee.
As recently as 2017, Clowney was the only player in the AFC with at least 20 tackles for loss and 20 quarterback hits. That was also the only time in his career he played all 16 games (this just in: they’re now playing 17).
In the end, this was a low-risk, one-year deal for the Browns, who already have more offensive talent than the Steelers and have improved their defense — notably with the signing of safety John Johnson III — as we head into the draft.
I still say the Steelers’ defense is better. It better be, if this team is going to defend its AFC North title. Though depth remains an issue, it still has at least one star at all three levels and has been bolstered by the surprise return of two players — Williams and nose tackle Tyson Alualu.
So much for the idea that signing JuJu Smith-Schuster cost the Steelers their defense, right? That idea never made much sense, seeing as JuJu will play next season on half the cap hit ($2.4 million) of the place kicker, but it has now been disproven emphatically.
Bud Dupree is a major loss. No denying that. But he probably wasn’t going to be signed long-term even in a normal year. T.J. Watt’s getting the big money at that position.
Steven Nelson gave up seven touchdowns last season, so it’s hard to view that as a devastating blow. Mike Hilton was the bigger deal from this perspective, and I’m still not clear, based on what has transpired since, why he couldn’t have been retained at a similar price to what Cincinnati paid.
As for Williams, we all know the limitations. He’s not great in coverage. But he still offers plenty, including leadership and some serious thump in the run game, which is critical in a run-heavy division.
Williams was leading the league in TFLs midway through the season and finished with 14. That tied him with Aaron Donald, among others, though Williams did not look the same after returning from the COVID list in late December. Normally, he finishes tackles with extreme suddenness —- you might say he puts running backs in the Boom Boom Room — but there was very little of that late in the season. And he is 31, which adds to the mystery as he enters his ninth season.
No one can say for sure how COVID might have impacted him, but I took note when Williams tweeted this memorable recap of his experience: “Lungs feel like I smoked 8 packs of Newports 3 Black and Milds and a Russian Cream.”
The whole Steelers defense got smoked in the Cleveland playoff debacle. No one should escape wrath for such a sorry performance, but if you were going to judge each player’s future based on that game, you’d get rid of ’em all.
I still happen to believe this is a pretty good defense. Williams helps make it so.
And won’t it be interesting to track his numbers with those of Jadeveon Clowney?
Joe Starkey: jstarkey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @joestarkey1. Joe Starkey can be heard on the “Cook and Joe” show weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on 93.7 The Fan.
First Published: April 15, 2021, 1:28 p.m.
