Houston Texans linebacker Jadeveon Clowney was recently placed under the team's franchise tag, and now contract negotiations can begin.

Considering Clowney wants a long-term deal and the Texans want to keep him as long as possible, head coach Bill O'Brien made stated it will be ‘interesting' as contract talks play out. 

“It’ll be interesting,” O’Brien said during the coaches breakfast with the media. “We try to do the best we can to represent our organization in the best way possible relative to each player.

“JD has been a really good player for us every year. I have a great fondness for Jadeveon. He’s a good teammate (and) a good guy. (He) plays hard and (makes) a lot of plays for us.”

Clowney has been a tremendous force since joining the league a handful of years ago and plays a crucial part in the team's success. Houston has a lot of talent on the defensive side of the ball, and while J.J. Watt will likely always remain the team's biggest threat, Clowney is a very solid complement to Watt.

“This is what we think is best right now for our organization under the spirit of the tag where you try to continue to negotiate with JD and his representative,” O’Brien said. “Obviously, you don’t want him walking away in free agency, so that’s the spirit of the franchise tag to kind of give you some more time to negotiate. That’s what we’re doing.”

The Texans will likely remain in talks with Clowney for the foreseeable offseason, and a deal could be made at any time now.