Texans' Clowney admits he's being held back by knee injury

Houston Texans defensive end Jadeveon Clowney told reporters after Sunday's 23-13 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals that he's still being held back by a knee injury that has limited him all season.

“Somewhat,” Clowney said, according to the Houston Chronicle. “Some things are holding me back still but I’m just out here trying to do what I can do and have fun. You never know if you’re going to have an injury or not coming into the league. So when that happened to me, it was a setback. 

"I’m just trying to do everything I need to do to get back to where I need to be to help the team out.”

The first overall pick in the 2014 draft tore his meniscus in Week 1 and has struggled in a disappointing rookie season with the Texans. His toughness and integrity have been openly questioned by the organization. 

The perception is that Clowney is unprepared to do whatever it takes to get on the field on Sundays. Earlier this season, Clowney posted a photo to Instagram during a game he missed with an illness, sending hot-takers everywhere into a white-hot rage.

Clowney's play is not helping his cause either. He was limited to just three tackles Sunday, and was called for a neutral-zone infraction that set up a Bengals field goal.

“It didn’t cost us anything but five yards and we still stopped them in that series and gave up three points,” Clowney said of the play. “But they still got to use more time off the clock.”