Jadeveon Clowney 'wanted to mature more' before going back home to Panthers

No longer a case of the right team, wrong time, the stars have finally aligned for Jadeveon Clowney to join his hometown club.

The Panthers signed the edge rusher on Wednesday who grew up in the Carolinas and starred collegiately for the Gamecocks, bringing Clowney back to his roots after a winding, 10-year career in the NFL.

"I used to just watch them on TV all the time and say I can't wait till I get my opportunity to do that one day," Clowney said during Friday's introductory news conference, per the team website. "Years ago, when I hit free agency, I told my agent not to reach out to Carolina because I wanted to mature more. And to get to this point where I know if I have to go back there, I can handle myself, and it won't be a problem for me to do my job because I was still learning how to be a pro.

"So now I'm 31. I said I'm at the age now where I'm cool going back home; I can handle myself."

Clowney was a monster in three seasons for South Carolina from 2011-13, garnering highlights aplenty for lumber-laying while amassing 24 sacks and nine forced fumbles before becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.

That brought him to the Houston Texans, where he took time to come into his own as a professional but eventually made three straight Pro Bowls between 2016-18.

He ended his first five years in the league with a trade to Seattle, then spent the back half of his 20s as a nomad. Since 2019, Clowney has played for the Seahawks, Titans, Browns and Ravens, staying more than a season only in Cleveland. 

He took his lumps -- mainly with injuries but occasionally running afoul of his coaching staff, such as when the Browns held him out of the 2022 regular-season finale due to comments over his usage.

But while he never