Following his impressive performance this past weekend, a Clemson rookie in the NFL got some love from one of his veteran teammates, who just so happens to be a former South Carolina player.
Baltimore Ravens defensive end/outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney had high praise for former Tiger linebacker Trenton Simpson, who certainly took advantage of the opportunities he had with the Ravens sitting some starters during Saturday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A third-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft (86th overall), Simpson recorded his first career sack, posted two tackles for loss and totaled seven tackles overall with a quarterback hit.
“I think he played great,” Clowney said, via FOX Baltimore sports anchor/reporter Rocco DiSangro. “I told some of the guys on the sideline, I said, ‘Damn, this GM here don’t miss with his draft picks, do he.’ He got some dogs out here. He drafted a good group of guys from (defensive tackle Justin) Madubuike to him to (wide receiver) Zay (Flowers) to everybody really. But good group, and they out there playing at a high level and playing great for the Baltimore Ravens, and I’m looking forward to seeing them guys in the future.”
Simpson has primarily been a special teams player this season and had played only 20 defensive snaps this season entering Saturday’s game, but saw 26 defensive snaps against the Steelers and certainly flashed his potential.
The future looks bright for Simpson, a 2022 Butkus Award semifinalist at Clemson who finished his Tiger career (2020-22) with 187 tackles (22.5 for loss), 12.5 sacks, six pass breakups and three forced fumbles over 37 games (27 starts).
Jadeveon Clowney with high praise for GM Eric DeCosta when asked about Trenton Simpson.
"I said man, damn, this GM don't miss with his draft picks do he. He got some dogs out here."
Clowney says he thinks Simpson played great #RavensFlock pic.twitter.com/aeC7Qd3pDY
— Rocco DiSangro (@RoccoDiSangro) January 7, 2024
–Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images