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Browns DE Jadeveon Clowney: 'I still can dominate this league'

The Cleveland Browns signed Jadeveon Clowney to a one-year contract on Wednesday.

CLEVELAND — On Wednesday, the Cleveland Browns signed defensive end Jadeveon Clowney to a one-year deal.

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But while Clowney may not have found a new home until nearly a month after the start of free agency, the three-time Pro Bowl selection is determined to prove he's far from an afterthought.

"With my potential and the way I can play the game, if I can stay healthy and stay out of there -- yeah, I shouldn't be far away from being the Defensive Player of the Year," Clowney said. "I've got that type of potential and I can do it."

Informed that his new teammate, Myles Garrett, also has Defensive Player of the Year aspirations, Clowney smiled.

"We can compete for it -- or All-Pro," he said. "At least for All-Pro, I know. One and two, something like that."

While Clowney's talent has been apparent since he arrived at South Carolina as the nation's No. 1 recruit in 2011, injuries have played a large role in preventing the No. 1 pick of the 2014 NFL Draft from truly reaching his potential.

After signing a one-year deal with the Tennessee Titans last offseason, the 2016 second-team All-Pro selection appeared in just eight games before suffering a season-ending meniscus injury. That continued a trend that dated back to 2014, when a knee injury that ultimately required microfracture knee surgery ended his rookie season after just four games.

"Probably the worst thing you could have in this game," he said of the injury.

Despite earning three consecutive Pro Bowl appearances from 2016-2018, the 28-year-old Clowney admitted he's yet to live up to the hype that he entered the league with. In Cleveland, he's confident he can accomplish just that -- so long as he's able to stay on the field.

"I made three Pro Bowls, and it is funny because I have not ever really been all the way healthy to the point where I felt like nothing was bothering me. I still can dominate this league, I know that," said Clowney, who has appeared in all 16 games during a season just once in his career.

"But if I ever reach my max potential or get back there like I feel now, they say the sky is the limit, but it is probably higher than that. They have footprints on the moon, though. That is where we are trying to reach. I just want to stay healthy. If I play 16 games, I think we will be ready to see. Just let me work on that.”

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