Report: Texans place franchise tag on Jadeveon Clowney

The Houston Texans have unsurprisingly taken steps to keep Jadeveon Clowney.

According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, the Texans have placed the franchise tag on their star pass rusher. ESPN’s Adam Schefter adds that it is a non-exclusive tag, and the two sides continue to try to work toward a long-term deal.

The #Texans have placed the franchise tag on Jadeveon Clowney, source said.

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 4, 2019

This is non-exclusive franchise tag for Jadeveon Clowney with the goal still being to reach long-term deal, per source. https://t.co/DikdFpZl0Y

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 4, 2019

This doesn’t come as a huge shock, as negotiating a long-term deal with Clowney ahead of the tag deadline was always going to be a heavy lift. It was reported last year that progress had been made on a “mega-extension,” but it was never finalized, and it looks like the two sides will be trying again this year.