HOUSTON -- As a part-time outside linebacker and a part-time defensive end for the Texans, Jadeveon Clowney is often asked to wear many different hats, but he doesn't let that alter his approach.

"Wherever they put me, I feel like I can make a play," Clowney said. "That's just my mindset: No matter where they put me, I know I can make a play."

As a defensive end, Clowney is the perfect sidekick to J.J. Watt in Houston's pass rush, which is tied for 10th in the NFL with 39 sacks. With Watt at 14.5 sacks and Clowney at 8.0, they have combined for more than half of Houston's total and nearly double the Oakland Raiders' 12 sacks with two games remaining.

Clowney also has 17 quarterback hits this season and is within striking distance of his career-high 9.5 sacks, set last season. If he can finally get to 10 sacks in the final two regular-season games against the Philadelphia Eagles and the Jacksonville Jaguars, it will bolster his argument for a bigger contract in the offseason. He is making $12.3 million while playing out his fifth-year option and can be a free agent in the spring, when the Texans will have to decide if they can afford to keep Clowney and Watt.

Jadeveon Clowney has 8.0 sacks and has been a force against the run this season for the Texans. Mark Brown/Getty Images

Clowney, the 2014 No. 1 draft pick, was plagued by injuries and called a bust during his first two seasons in Houston.

"People don't even know, man," Clowney said. "It's crazy. I got hurt in my first ever NFL game and didn't really have a chance to show everybody what I really can do. I came back and have started to build back up, but I still feel like I have a lot of work to do."

The criticism has certainly been increasingly difficult to justify in recent years. Earlier this week, Clowney was named to his third consecutive Pro Bowl.

"It meant a lot," Clowney said. "I've been working so hard and playing hard for my teammates. This goes to all of my teammates, because it's more than individual effort. We all contribute. You could've picked any one of those guys."

Aside from being one of the league's top pass-rushers, Clowney also moonlights as an elite run-stopper.

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He has 37 total tackles (31 solo), 14 tackles for loss and two fumble recoveries in 13 games played this season. He is tied for ninth in the NFL in tackles for loss and has four games with multiple tackles for loss. His 51 tackles for loss since 2016 are tied for the third most in the NFL during that span, and he leads the NFL in run stuffs with 31.5 since 2016.

"We've always thought he had the versatility," Texans defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel said. "You have to use him how you think he best helps the team. We've moved him around quite a bit this year, and he's really taken to it because he's able to make plays inside and outside."

Clowney said he feels like he has been asked to play more snaps at linebacker this season than in his previous four years, a role he embraces.

Houston ranks No. 1 in allowing opponents just 3.6 rushing yards per attempt and No. 4 with just 1,236 rushing yards allowed this season.

"Whatever I can do to help this team -- I'll line up anywhere," Clowney said. "They know I'm here to help, and I'm willing to do whatever it takes."

Clowney and the Texans (10-4) will travel to Philadelphia to take on an Eagles team on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS) that ranks 27th in rushing yards and 29th in rushing yards per attempt but that has shown improvement in recent weeks. In winning three of its past four contests, Philadelphia has topped 100 rushing yards in each win, a number it failed to reach in three of its four previous games.

"This is like a playoff game for us," Clowney said. "There's so much at stake, and you've just got to go out there and play hard. We want to win them all. We're going to show up and play -- that's what we're there for, to win games."