01-18-2020, 02:33 AM
HOUSTON -- Anyone whos seen Jadeveon Clowneys monster tackle against Michigan in the Outback Bowl last year wont be surprised to learn what the No. Chris Jones Super Bowl Jersey . 1 overall pick likes best about football. "Big hits," he said. "Im all about hitting. I dont care who it is." Thats what the Houston Texans are counting on from the South Carolina defensive end after skipping a chance to take a quarterback -- their top need -- with the top pick Thursday night. Clowney was introduced on Friday in Houston, joining a team that features 2012 Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt. Clowney was already known as a top player before that hit in the Outback Bowl. But when he burst through the line and crashed into Vincent Smith, knocking his helmet off and the ball out of his hands in the process, his star power reached another level. Hes hoping to pile up plenty more highlight-reel hits this season, but knows hell have to be careful about how he delivers them. "Thats what I live for is making big hits," he said. "I hope I dont get no fines this year. I might have to dial it down a little." New Houston coach Bill OBrien, who took over a team that hasnt won since Sept. 15, raved about Clowneys many attributes. But one thing stood out to OBrien as he got to know Clowney. "He really talked about how much he loved winning and how winning was important to him," OBrien said. "These are the type guys that were looking for, were looking for team guys, were looking for tough guys, were looking for guys that are going to come in here and understand that theyre part of a team and theyre coming here to work hard." Houston general manager Rick Smith obviously coveted Clowney for his pass-rushing ability, but values his attitude perhaps just as much. "Hes driven, and in my opinion very committed to being an excellent football play, and we need that," Smith said. Clowney doesnt model his play after any player in particular, but he does study many guys to elevate his game. "I watch J.J. Watt, I watch Ray Lewis, I watch Lawrence Taylor before games," Clowney said. "I go out there on the field (and say): Im about to pull a Lawrence Taylor. Im about to pull a Ray Lewis today. I try to take over the game and try to dominate a game and thats what I do." Clowney got a good laugh during Thursdays news conference when OBrien referred to him as J.D. "I guess he has trouble pronouncing Jadeveon," Clowney said. "So I told him: Just call me J.D., man. Were going to keep it simple. And its quicker and easier." This isnt anything new to Clowney, who said people say his unique name wrong all the time. "I ask mom: Where you get that name from? I mispronounce it sometimes," he joked. "Its all right though. Ive got so many nicknames, people give me J., J.D. call me Clowney, 7. Ive got so many names. Just dont call me Clown." Everyone in his family has names that starts with the letter J, and his mother wanted to incorporate his father Davids name into her sons and came up with the hybrid name. Clowney grew up in Rock Hill, South Carolina, which has a population of less than 70,000 people. Hes excited about moving to big city, but is a bit concerned about the traffic in Houston, home to more than 2 million people. "I better get here early," Clowney said. "If I got to be here at 8, Ive got to get up at 5:30-6, get going and get here on time." LeSean McCoy Super Bowl Jersey .C. -- Glenn Howard needed an extra end to move into the Masters Grand Slam of Curling final. Derrick Nnadi Super Bowl Jersey . Lawrie was hit on the hand by Cincinnati pitcher Johnny Cueto in the second inning of Sundays 4-3 loss to the Reds. http://www.thechiefsshoponline.com/Youth...fs-jersey/ . The right-hander pitched into the seventh inning and boosted Cincinnatis struggling offence by hitting a double and scoring as the Reds ended a seven-game losing streak by beating the Atlanta Braves 1-0 Saturday night.VANCOUVER -- Alex Anthopoulos was a busy man last off-season. The Toronto Blue Jays general manager made a series of bold moves that reshaped the club ahead of what would turn out to be a disastrous 2013 campaign. The lead-up to the 2014 season has been relatively quiet in comparison, with the Blue Jays biggest splash coming when they cut ties with catcher J.P Arencibia and replaced him with free-agent Dioner Navarro. While that deal wasnt not on the same level as the headline-grabbing acquisitions of Jose Reyes, Mark Buehrle and R.A. Dickey, Anthopoulos says he wont be adding any pieces through trade or free agency unless it fits into the teams model. "We made a lot of big moves early last off-season. It wasnt by design, it just worked out that way," Anthopoulos said Friday. "Weve had a lot of dialogue. Theres still a lot of players out there, just havent been able to line up with respect to a price, whether its trade or free-agent cost. "We do have the ability on some trade fronts to just say Yes. We know what the asking prices are -- just not willing to pay that price. From a free-agent standpoint ... we have been given a price and we just dont necessarily see the value right now." The starting rotation continues to be a point of emphasis after a miserable 2013 that saw Toronto finish last in the American League East after starting the season as World Series favourites. Free agent starters Ervin Santana or Ubaldo Jimenez are still on the open market, but Anthopoulos said theres a chance that the rotation could be filled out from within. "We have a lot of candidates and a lot of options. Someone like Brandon Morrow coming back (from injury) is a huge boost for us, some of our young kids that are coming back are certainly going help," he said. "We still have dialogue and try to upgrade but we do have some upside to some of the guys that are coming back." Anthopoulos, who was in town for a luncheon with the single-A Vancouver Canadians, also touched on the New York Yankees signing of Japanese starter Masahiro Tanaka earlier this week. The 25-year-old right-hander inked a seven-year deal worth $155 million dollars with Torontos AL East rivals that also includes a $20-millionn dollar payment to his club team. Juan Thornhill Super Bowl Jersey. The Blue Jays, who have an internal policy of not signing player contracts longer than five years, were rumoured to be in the running for Tanakas services early on in the process. "Obviously hes a great starter and there was a lot speculation on where the dollars would go just based on the previous two Japanese starters (Daisuke Matsuzaka and Yu Darvish)," said Anthopoulos. "I think it was expected that he would go north of (their price tags) -- $175 million, I dont know if anybody predicted that. "Hes very talented and the Yankees certainly got better." Anthopoulos said the Blue Jays use the five-year limit on contracts as "a guideline" but tend to shy away from longer-term deals because they offer clubs very little wiggle room. "Weve held firm on our five-year policy in terms of contracts. When free agents are signing for seven, eight years, then normally thats where we tap out," he said. "We definitely have the resources financially in terms of annual value and salaries and things like that. I think weve proven that with some of the players we have acquired. But just the length of term -- very rarely do those seven-, eight-year deals work out." Anthopoulos and manager John Gibbons will be feeling the heat if the Blue Jays stumble out of the gate as the they did in 2013. Fans flocked to Rogers Centre with dreams of a return to the teams glory years of the early 1990s that included two World Series titles, but were instead bitterly disappointed with the product on the field. With pitchers and catchers set to report for spring training on Feb. 17, a repeat in 2014 surely wont fly. "Youre always anxious to try to improve the club and to add to it, but you dont necessarily have to guard against it when you know theres a deal that just doesnt make any sense," said Anthopoulos. "We just dont want to force a deal and do it for the sake of doing it. "We want to make moves that we think are going to help the club. If we have to go more years and dollars than we believe in, people might get excited now but a few months into it we may be regretting that deal and be hamstrung with a contract that we dont want." ' ' '