After a decade with the Houston Texans, JJ Watt is heading to the Arizona Cardinals. Not only that, but he is getting special treatment for his move, receiving $ 31 million in a two-year contract, in addition to a No. 99 shirt previously retired by the franchise. Before announcing his move to Arizona, however, Watt apparently received a special offer from another team: the chance to play with his brothers. According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Steelers were “in the mix” for the longtime Texans star and tried to reunite Watt with his brothers TJ and Derek, who play in Pittsburgh.
Watt “would have liked to play with (his) brothers,” reported Fowler on Tuesday. “But (the) Cardinals took (a) a clear advantage in the () final days, and Pittsburgh has a lot to discover with (its) capitalization deficit, the Big Ben contract and more.”
Pittsburgh may well have targeted Watt as a potential replacement for the initial Bud Dupree pass rusher, which is set to hit the free agency later this month. As Fowler alluded, however, part of the reason why the Steelers may not retain Dupree in the first place is because they are in a somewhat precarious situation. Even with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger expected to restructure a lucrative 2021 salary to return for at least another season, the Steelers could be forced to leave important free agents like running back James Conner, wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and striker left Alejandro Villanueva leave the market open.
Watt could have run against his brother TJ in Pittsburgh to form one of the NFL’s most formidable pass rushing pairs; the youngest Watt is honored three times by the All-Pro and now has at least 13 sacks in three consecutive seasons, attracting the interest of Defensive Player of the Year in 2020. But the Cardinals will pay Watt generously to line up alongside Chandler Jones in Arizona, giving him an average of more than $ 15 million a year after the veteran received his requested release from Houston.