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The Atlanta Falcons saw another one of their unrestricted free agents make a move elsewhere on Friday, as DE Adrian Clayborn has reportedly agreed to a deal with the New England Patriots.
Patriots reached agreement with former Falcons’ DE Adrian Clayborn, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 16, 2018
The #Patriots are signing #Falcons free agent DE Adrian Clayborn to a 2-year deal worth $12M, source said.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 16, 2018
Clayborn joined the Falcons as a free agent in 2015 and was one of the first new players brought in under head coach Dan Quinn. As a player with durability concerns from his days with Tampa Bay, Clayborn put those questions behind him and played in 45 out of 48 regular season games in three years as a Falcon.
Clayborn recorded 17.0 sacks, two forced fumbles, four fumble recoveries and two defensive touchdowns in his time as a Falcon. Last season, he totaled 9.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, two fumbles recoveries and one touchdown while playing in all 18 of Atlanta’s games.
The magnum opus of Clayborn’s career came in a week 10 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys last season, where he recorded 6.0 sacks (the second most in a single game in NFL history). That game famously earned him $750,000 in incentive money.
We wish Adrian Clayborn the best of luck in his career moving forward and thank him for the contributions he’s made to the Falcons the past three years.