The Houston Texans and DE JJ Watt mutually agreed to part ways, the team announced today.
Watt is the all-time leader of the franchise (101.0), three times winner of the NFL Associated Press Defensive Player of the Year award (2012, 2014-15) and NFL’s Man of the Year 2017 Walter Payton.
“Changing is never easy, especially when it involves those you love. JJ’s impact not only on our organization, but on the entire Houston community, is unlike any other player in the history of our franchise,” said the president and CEO from Texans Cal McNair. “I told JJ earlier this week that we are going to consider him a Texan forever. We take comfort in knowing that this is not goodbye, but a ‘goodbye’. For now, let’s build on the foundation that JJ created here and move forward with our unwavering mission to bring a championship to our city, create memorable experiences for our fans and do great things for Houston. “
“Simply put, there has been no person in the past decade who has made a greater impact on the Texans organization than JJ Watt,” said co-founder and senior president Janice S. McNair. “JJ’s dominance in the field was unprecedented and resulted in countless moments that will go down in the history of Texans. For me, what best represents JJ’s connection with Houston is his tradition of playing ball with fans before every game at home. The number of people wearing # 99 T-shirts with smiles on their faces, fully summarizing JJ’s passion for relating to Texan fans at every possible opportunity. His commitment to the community is unlike any player in NFL history. We are forever grateful to JJ and his family. “
“The connection I have with the people of Houston is special and I will never take it for granted, because I know how rare it is. I just want you to know that I love and thank you,” said Watt in a message to fans via social media . “I want to thank the McNair family for casting me and giving me my first opportunity in the NFL. Thank you, Houston.”
The Texans selected Watt as the 11th choice in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft, and he appeared in 128 games for the team in 10 seasons (2011-20). A five-time selection from the Pro Bowl and AP First-Team All-Pro (2012-15, 2018), Watt set franchise records in sacks (101.0), tackles for defeat (172), quarterback strikes (281) and forced fumbles (25) to go along with 531 tackles in total, 61 defended passes and 16 fumble recoveries. He has the four highest single season sack totals in the team’s history (2012, 2014, 2015, 2018) and remains the only player in league history who has accumulated at least 15.0 percent of the sacks in a single franchise .
Watt is one of only three players in NFL history to win at least three AP NFL Defense of the Year awards, which he did in 2012 and 2014-15. Since joining the NFL in 2011, he leads the league in losing tackles (172), quarterback hitting (281), multi-sack games (26) and sack yards (713.5), while taking second place in sacks (101.0). In 2020, Watt, who led the NFL in sacks twice (2012 and 2015), became the fourth fastest player in NFL history with a total of 100.0 sacks, doing so only in his 120th career game.
From 2012 to 2015, Watt recorded four consecutive seasons with at least 10.0 sacks, including two seasons with 20.5 in 2012 and 2014. During that time, he won six of his seven AFC Defensive Player of the Week awards and five of their six AFC Defensive Player of the Month Awards careers. Watt is also the only player in NFL history with 20.0 or more sacks and 10 or more passes saved in the same season (2012 and 2014), and he is tied for fifth among strikers in league history with six regular seasons. touchdowns, including three receiving touchdowns.
Off the field, Watt’s response to the disastrous Hurricane Harvey in 2017 helped him win the prestigious Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award. The hurricane hit Houston when Watt and the Texans were playing their third preseason game. While watching events unfold from afar, Watt posted a video on social media announcing a fundraising campaign with a very attainable goal of $ 200,000, with which he intended to match the first $ 100,000. Little did he know that in just 19 days he would help raise more than $ 37 million, a total that ended up growing to more than $ 41 million. Watt was dedicated to finding organizations that would apply the funds in the way that he promised donors and disaster victims. He also made sure that every dollar went directly to the poor in and around Houston.
Watt started the Justin J. Watt Foundation when he was a junior at the University of Wisconsin in 2010 with a desire to help children in need. His personal motto of “Dream Big, Work Hard” culminated in a mission he used to impact communities across the country. The foundation has provided more than $ 6 million in funds to schools and organizations that have insufficient funds for their after-school sports programs for young people or simply no after-school athletic programs.