Once upon a time, J.J. Watt was on the fast track to becoming the most dominant defensive player in NFL history.
Instead, his life took a left turn and he upgraded – he’ll now head into retirement in a few weeks as one of the very best people in NFL history.
Watt came out of nowhere – via Central Michigan and Wisconsin, anyway – and Houston Texans fans were so excited he was their first-round pick in the vaunted 2011 draft that they booed his selection. But Watt won them over by the end of his rookie season, when the Texans qualified for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history and won their inaugural postseason game – Watt’s 29-yard pick-six against the Cincinnati Bengals proving the decisive score in a 31-10 wild-card victory.
That was hardly predictive of what would come next.
Over the following four seasons, Watt burst onto the national radar, winning the league’s Defensive Player of the Year award three times – a feat matched only by Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor and eventual Hall of Famer Aaron Donald – while earning first-team All-Pro honors in all four campaigns. It took Watt 82 games to record 75 sacks, a benchmark only the legendary Reggie White reached faster. And since sacks became an official statistic in 1982, Watt is the only player to record at least 20 in a season multiple times.
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He even came in second for league MVP honors in 2014, an award no defender has won since Taylor in 1986.
Then-Texans defensive coordinator Wade Phillips saw the potential before Watt’s breakout in 2012, saying in training camp that year: “(Watt’s) going to be a bust – not a first-round bust but a bust in the Hall of Fame.
“The only players I’ve seen that can do what he can do with his intensity can be found in Canton.”
Phillips was squarely on the money, and Watt will surely earn first-ballot entry into the Hall.
But he’ll be remembered as much for what he did off the field as for the sacks, batted balls, mic’d up one-liners and perpetual hustle on display every time he suited up.
Over the past seven seasons, Watt has received one All-Pro nod and been recognized as a Pro Bowler once. Myriad injuries limited him to 69 of a possible 114 regular-season starts. Rehabbing from leg, chest and back issues, among numerous other ailments, proved arduous and scary for a player who’d established such a lofty bar for himself.
There would be no Super Bowl appearance for Watt, who joined the Arizona Cardinals in 2021 after requesting his release from a Texans franchise in disarray.
But physical pain didn’t prevent him from spreading cheer, goodwill and much-needed emotional and financial assistance. Despite being rejected by it on draft day, Watt became ingrained in a Houston community that quickly reversed course to embrace him. He frequently supported local police and firemen as well as the military. His outreach was occasionally captured by the media spotlight and very often not.
The Justin J Watt Foundation‘s stated mission is “to reach out to middle schools that have insufficient funding for after-school athletic programs, or that have no after-school athletics whatsoever.” It’s donated $6.8 million over 12 years as it nears a goal of $7.5 million.
However, Watt shone brightest in 2017, a year when he played five games due to a broken leg and went sackless for a 4-12 Texans team. Otherwise, all he did was raise $41.6 million for Houston and its residents, seeding the effort with $100,000 from his own pocket, after the city was ravaged by Hurricane Harvey. Watt seemed to be everywhere, letting the country know about Houston’s crisis via interviews to every medium imaginable – that’s when he wasn’t passing out water, food, clothing or other sundries from the back of a tractor trailer in Texas’ sweltering heat.
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“The memories of destruction and devastation remain, but they are accompanied by memories of hope, selflessness, and the beauty of the human spirit,” Watt said in a statement a year after initiating the recovery effort.
“I was fortunate enough to witness that generosity first hand, as the fundraiser that I started with a simple goal of $200,000 turned into an unbelievable outpouring of support from people all around the globe.”
Watt’s tireless efforts to help his adopted hometown made him the runaway winner for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award in 2017, an honor the league considers its most prestigious. Few will ever live up to its lofty aspirations the way Watt did and continues to do.
He recently became a father for the first time, tweeting Tuesday as he signaled his retirement: “My heart is filled with nothing but love and gratitude. It’s been an absolute honor and a pleasure.”
The announcement came two days after his 2-month-old son, Koa, attended his first NFL game. Watt, 33, was a menace reminiscent of his prime, making six tackles and putting two licks on Tom Brady even if TB12’s Buccaneers got the better of Watt’s Cardinals in overtime.
Koa surely won’t remember the game. But no NFL fan will ever forget Watt, whose son will grow up in the shadow of a man who has proven to be a much more impactful person than football player.
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Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Nate Davis on Twitter @ByNateDavis.