Carson Wentz Clears Jadeveon Clowney

The Eagles quarterback does not believe the hit from Seattle's defensive end in last year's playoff game was on purpose

If the Eagles do have an interest in bringing in Jadeveon Clowney their quarterback will not be standing in the way.

While appearing on the 94WIP morning show Friday, Carson Wentz downplayed the significance of the borderline hit from Clowney that knocked him out of the game very early during Philadelphia’s 17-9 season-ending loss to Seattle in January.

Recently a Houston-area reporter spoke to Clowney, who remains a free agent as he continues to rehab from core-muscle surgery, and listed Philadelphia as one of five teams who might be interested in the former No. 1 overall pick.

“I don't think there was any ill-will,” Wentz told Angelo Cataldi when asked about the play that gave the QB a concussion. “I think Jadeveon is a heck of a player. Whether it was clean or not, I don't think he intended to have a dirty hit. It was one of those fluky things, the way I was diving, the way he was diving."

Ultimately, Josh McCown was forced to enter the game and finished despite tearing his hamstring in the first half.

Many fans were incensed that Clowney was not flagged on the play nor punished afterward.

"At the end of the day, whether there was a flag thrown or a fine, I was still knocked out,” said Wentz. “I was still coming out of the game, I still wasn't able to finish. So to me, I don't know if 15 yards would have made a ton of difference anyway.”

The frustration of missing the postseason for a third consecutive season remains the most difficult part of the situation for Wentz.

“Trust me, it was extremely frustrating to deal with that and also to know that the season is ending and I couldn't be out there to help my team those last three quarters,” he said. “At the end of the day, my faith is the number one thing in my life and just to trust that God has got a bigger purpose and a bigger plan for it."

As for Clowney actually joining the Eagles, that remains unlikely unless the market falls dramatically for the star edge rusher.

For now, the Eagles top three edge players are Brandon Graham, Derek Barnett, and Josh Sweat with a host of others fighting for a supporting role, players like Genard Avery Shareef Miller, Joe Ostman, Daeshon Hall and 2020 seventh-round pick Casey Toohill.

John McMullen covers the Eagles for SI.com and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John every day on SIRIUSXM’s Tony Bruno Show with Harry Mayes, Every Tuesday and Thursday with Eytan Shander on SBNation Radio, and every weekday on ESPN 97.3 in South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen