Cowboys' Brian Schottenheimer Explains Jadeveon Clowney's Week 3 Absence

Any hope that the Cowboys had turned over a new leaf after a thrilling overtime win over the Giants in Week 2 was quickly squashed in Week 3 when the Bears raced out to a 24-14 halftime lead en route to a 31-14 blowout win in Week 3 in Chicago.

In doing so, the Cowboys yielded a career first in what has been a tumultuous career thus far for quarterback Caleb Williams: They allowed him to play an entire game without being sacked. Williams had been sacked six times in the first two games this year, and was sacked 68 times in 17 games last year--an average of 4.0 per game in 2024 and 3.0 this year.

But the Cowboys got to Williams zero times on Sunday, putting a fine point on the ineptitude of the team's defensive line since the trade of star edge Micah Parsons. The Cowboys have tallied just four sacks all year.

Jadeveon Clowney 'Needs a Little Bit More Time'

The hope for the Cowboys is that the additoin of former No. 1 overall pick Jadeveon Clowney will help change that. Clowney himself is 32 years old and not the Pro Bowler he was early in his career. But he had 5.5 sacks for Carolina last season, and at least has a chance to bulk up this pass rush.

Clowney said entering Week 3 that he felt he was ready to hit the field and start playing. But the team opted not to play him.

Coach Brian Schottenheimer explained why:

“At the end of the day, you just feel like he still needs a little bit of time to ramp up. He hasn’t played football. He wanted to go, but the concern would be if he had to play a lot of snaps, would he be able to do that? He’s doing everything in his power to be ready to go. He wanted to go, but he understands as well. Really good conversation with him before the game.”