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Jadeveon Clowney walked back into the building in Battle Red, eight years after he last wore it, and sat down with John Harris and me on Texans All-Access.
"It's going good, man," the DE said. "Excited to be back. Looking forward to the opportunity. Can't wait to get going."
Asked what it felt like to come back after eight seasons away, Clowney didn't dress it up.
"It's very weird, but exciting. I told my mom, my wife, I was like, it's gonna be a big difference for me after leaving for so long and coming back, but I'm looking forward to that. I got a great team here. I can help, contribute, and chasing that Super Bowl."
He left the Texans in 2019. He never left Houston.
"I've been raising my family. I got three beautiful kids, a 10-year-old, a six-year-old and a four-year-old, and they love Houston. Born and raised here. I've just been playing football other places, but I've been watching from a distance, and it's been great. I'm just happy to be back in the building."
I asked him what's changed most since he walked in here as a 21-year-old in 2014.
"Just growing up, becoming a man, learning more about myself and being patient. My patience has grown. Having kids teaches you patience and teaches you everything about life — that you can't rush into stuff, how to do things slow and take your time and make your decisions. That's been the bigger change for me. Getting married and having kids and building a family has been great for me."
Six teams in seven years followed his first Houston stint. Clowney said the constant was the thing he could always fall back on.
"It was difficult sometimes, because sometimes I was going out to training camp trying to jump into this team and a scheme in the middle of the season. But I always just say, at the end of the day, one thing you can do is play football. You're a football player, you're very instinctive, and I knew that about myself. So every time I walked out there, I said, I might not know the playbook like that off the bat, but I'm a very instinctive player. So I just let my instincts take over. And I just kept succeeding throughout my career, playing no matter where I went."
Johnny asked how much DeMeco Ryans factored into the decision.
"Very much a lot. The past seven, eight years, since he signed, I've been watching from a distance. He got that team ready to play. Them guys follow him. And you want to be a part of an organization like that, where the guy that everybody's believing in can lead. I'm at home watching that on TV, and I'm like, I can be a part of that. I know I can help that team. And when I had the opportunity to come back, it was a no-brainer for me. Then about the money and other teams that was calling, I was like, oh man, I got a chance to go back to where it all started and try to finish how I want to finish my career — my legacy, in the place where I started."
He joins an edge group that already includes Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr. I asked how he sees the fit.
"I told them guys, I know they got great pass rushers. I'm just a great player myself. I just told them, ain't gonna be no fall off out of them three. You won't be able to tell the difference. I don't want to just keep speaking on it. I'm a show me guy. So I'm just gonna show up every day and show them guys what I can do and contribute to help the team any way I can."
John raised the possibility of moving him around the front.
"I played it a lot here when I was here. I played inside a lot, rushing up the middle, over the guards, over the center. I feel like I can pretty much help anywhere they can see me fit. And I still dominate in the run game, still dominate getting to the quarterback, pressure."
This is season 13, and Clowney said the way he takes care of himself now bears no resemblance to how he started.
"It started crazy, because I got hurt my first game of my career. I probably played like seven, eight snaps and had that microfracture. And I came in at 270. All these years, it's just been developing a different way to attack my body — getting inflammation out, trying to get my knee flexion back. Over the years I just been getting better and better and better. I know I'm getting older in age, but my body started feeling better later in my career. I spent a lot of money on my body, but it worked out for me and paid off for me. And I still get to play 13 years in the league. It's been a blessing."
The lesson took a while to land.
"Probably when I left here. I was young and naive, and anybody could have got me to do anything at 20 and 21. If I knew what I know now, I probably would have told them, hey, just let me get fully healthy and come back where I wouldn't have to keep getting hurt. I just kept going out there, listening to other people, and I didn't listen to myself. As I got older, I started saying, just take care of your body. Listen to your body. Don't let nobody else tell you where you should be at in six weeks."
He still trains with the guys he came up with here.
"I work out with DJ Reader all the time. Kareem Jackson, Johnathan Joseph, all them guys. I still stay in touch with them. Kids hang out together. It's just been great, developing the relationships over the years. We just blessed to continue to play the game we love, and our kids get to watch us now."
His oldest, at 10, has become his toughest critic.
"You just don't want to let them down. My son know the game, and he like — so funny. I signed with Dallas late last year, and my first game I was rusty, against the Green Bay Packers. After the game he was like, dad, I know that wasn't you out there. And I was like, son, I promise you, I'm gonna get better from here. It ain't going to go backwards. But he noticed that type of stuff at 10 years old. He watches the game tight now. And I just be wanting to prove to him that I can still go. So half of the stuff I do is because of my kids. I be more consistent now in my career, and I work out because my son works out with me. I do a lot of stuff to try to lead him and show him how you're supposed to go about it."
The building itself has changed since he was last in it.
"It's so different. It's so much better, too. Locker room's amazing. The weight room's amazing. They put an upstairs in there. It's crazy. How could they evolve that much and add that much in this building? But they figured it out. And the training room's huge now."
He had a review of the cafeteria, too.
"The food, great. I just ate twice."
I told him about the fans walking past the show at practice, including one in a No. 90 jersey.
"I appreciate it. I'm so excited. So blessed to have you guys. It's wonderful. And I hope I can go ahead and make you guys proud again this year and give you everything I got. I'm looking forward to that. Hopefully lead this team to a Super Bowl. That's my plan this year. I'm sure that's everybody on this team's plan, and I just want to be a part of that."
As for the number: some roster shuffling had made 90 available again.
"Yes, sir. I'll be wearing my number 90. My number 90. I have it back."
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