J.J. Watt

Who is J.J. Watt?

J.J. Watt is a professional football player in the NFL. J.J. Watt, the number one NFL player in 2015 has played for the Houston Texans. The five-time Pro Bowl selection made history by becoming the only player in NFL history to record more than 20 sacks in a single season.

He has remained in the Top 100 NFL Players since his rookie season in the league until now.

Watt has also won the Best Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards on a number of occasions.

Early Life, Family, and Education

J.J. Watt was born on March 22, 1989, in Waukesha, Wisconsin.

His father is a firefighter, and his mother is Connie, who works as a vice president of building operations.

Furthermore, both of his younger brothers, Derek and T.J. Watt, are NFL players.

Watt has been a sports fan since he was a child. J.J. began playing ice hockey at the age of thirteen for multiple travel teams that traveled to Canada and Germany.

But soon, his schedules clashed, and he ran into financial difficulties.

As a result, Watt had to retire from hockey. During his high school years, J.J. participated in hockey, football, track & field, baseball, and basketball.

Watt was named Player of the Year in the Woodland Conference during his senior year at Pewaukee High School.

As a tight end and defensive end, he was named to the first team of the All-State, All-County, All-Area, and All-Conference teams.

With 399 receiving yards, 26 catches, and five touchdowns in his senior year, he was named MVP of the team.

He chose Central Michigan University to pursue his graduate degree.

However, he later transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

He got a Doctor of Humanities in Medicine degree from Baylor College of Medicine in 2018, despite his inability to complete his studies.

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 Facts of J.J. Watt

Income and Net Worth

As of 2022, J.J. Watt’s net worth is estimated between $10 million to $25 million.

He earns approximately $13 million annually, excluding his endorsements with Reebok, Ford Motor, Gatorade, and several others.

Also, as one of the highest-paid defensemen who signed a $100 million contract with the Texans, his net worth might keep on increasing.

Similarly, The football star had a “humble” house in Pearland, a luxurious house for people like us. However, he sold the house in 2016 and bought a cozy cabin in Wisconsin, where he has plans to do some modifications.

Even though he has not shared any pictures of his cars collection, he probably owns a collection of them. Additionally, he reportedly owns a Ford F-150 Platinum and a Polaris 1000.

Personal Logo

J.J. Watt unveiled and displayed his personal logo or stamp in 2016. The design, according to ESPN, depicts a building rising into the sky, which is a metaphor for Watt’s work ethic.

In truth, the logo has a lot of different interpretations.

The logo, for example, is an inverted 99 number that also resembles the letters ‘d’ and ‘b,’ which stand for ‘dream big.’ In addition, it represents the letter ‘W.’

College Career

Watt initially enrolled at Central Michigan University after being offered a scholarship. He appeared in 14 games during his tenure at Central Michigan.

Watt, however, opted to leave Michigan and attend the University of Wisconsin after a number of his coaches advised he switch to offensive lineman.

Watt was awarded a scholarship to play defensive end at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. He was also named Scout Team Player of the Year in Wisconsin.

Watt worked as a pizza delivery worker for Pizza Hut in Pewaukee at the same time.

Watt also spent two seasons with the Wisconsin Badgers.

Watt won the Ronnie Lott Trophy in 2010 and was named second-team All-American by the Associated Press and Sports Illustrated, as well as first-team All-Big Ten, academic All-Big Ten, and team MVP.

Professional Career

Watt was unable to complete his graduation since he was selected in the 2011 NFL Draft. In the first round, he became the first defensive end to be selected.

With the 11th overall pick, the Houston Texans selected him. On July 31, 2011, the Texans offered Watt a four-year, $11.24 million contract.

2011

He has five tackles against the Indianapolis Colts in his NFL debut with the Houston Texans in the season opener. Watt also had his first multi-sack game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on November 27.

J.J. of the Houston Texans puts pressure on Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles.

As a result, Watt has 48 solo tackles, eight assisted stops, and 5.5 sacks in his first season. For the first time in team history, the Texans qualified for the playoffs.

Watt also made an impression in the playoffs, as he faced the Cincinnati Bengals and the Baltimore Ravens.

In other words, he was named Texans Team Debut of the Year, USA Today All-Joe Team, and Pro-Football Weekly/PWFA All-Rookie Team in his rookie season.

2012–2013

Watt had one of the best defensive seasons in NFL history in 2012. For starters, in September and December, he was named AFC Defensive Player of the Month.

In the same year, J.J. was named MVP, USA Football Fundamentals Team, PFW First-Team All-Pro, Pro Football Weekly/PFWA Most Valuable Player, NFL 101 AFC Defensive Player of the Year, AP First-Team All-Pro, and AP Defensive Player of the Year.

Watt, in particular, garnered 49 out of 50 votes for Defensive Player of the Year. He is, in fact, the first Texan to win the NFL Player of the Year honor since 1971.

The Texans underperformed as a club in 2013 after a successful season the previous year.

Watt did, however, register his first two sacks of the season in a win over the Tennessee Titans in Week 2.

Despite giving their all, the Texans had a losing season, finishing with a 2–14 record. Despite this, Watt was named a Pro Bowl Captain and granted a title for the 2014 NFL Pro Bowl.

2014

Watt signed a new six-year contract with the Texans worth $100 million after the 2013 season finished.

In addition, he received a signing bonus of $30.9 million. He was the highest-paid non-quarterback in the NFL at the time.

On September 14, Watt became the first defensive player in Texans history to score a touchdown from scrimmage in a game against the Oakland Raiders.

Oakland Raiders vs. Houston Texans

In September 2014, Houston Texans #99 Watt celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Oakland Raiders.

With that in mind, on September 28, Watt became the sixth defensive lineman in Houston Texans history to record the longest interception return, as well as the fourth-longest interception return.

Watt hit the opposing player nine times during the game against the Buffalo Bills, but was flagged twice for roughing the passer. As a result of one of the incidents, he was fined $16,537.

Watt was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Month for September despite this.

Watt was named defense captain by Cris Carter, team captain of Team Carter, as a result of his outstanding performance. In preparation for the 2015 Pro Bowl.

Watt also won the Defensive MVP award following the Pro Bowl game. Since 2008, he was the first defensive player to receive MVP votes.

Even better, he was named Defensive Player of the Year. Watt is one of the few players to have won the award more than once.

2015-2016

NFL’s number one player of the year recorded 76 tackles, an NFL-leading 17.5 sacks; eight passes defended, three forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery in all sixteen games despite his groin injury.

Besides, he received his third Defensive Player of the Year award in the 2015 season.

Following his injury, on January 12, 2016, he underwent surgery for a sports hernia. As a result, Watt withdrew from the 2016 Pro Bowl, his fourth straight Pro Bowl honors.

Even so, he was the top defensive lineman and the third-best player on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016.

Unfavorably, on July 21, 2016, Watt had to undergo back surgery for a herniated disc.

He was put on the disabled list but returned in a short while to start the season. In week 1, when Watt returned, Texas won over the Chicago Bears.

Similarly, In Week 2, he recorded 1.5 sacks and five total tackles against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Likewise, he had two tackle assist in a game against the New England Patriots. But unfortunately, Watt had to undergo back surgery again on September 29, 2016.

As a result, he had to drawback for the rest of the season. Despite playing only three games, he was ranked 35th on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017.

2017-2018

The top NFL player returned to the field for the season-opening game against Jacksonville Jaguars. However, Watt had to leave the game during Week 5 due to his leg injury.

Kansas City Chiefs v Houston Texan

J.J. #99 of the Houston Texans is helped off the field after later was reported to be a tibial plateau fracture (Source – Getty Images)

Watt underwent surgery the next day because of a tibial plateau fracture in his left leg. For the remaining season, he had to sit out.

But despite that, he managed to keep his position on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018, ranking 84th.

Moreover, with his fame, he did some fantastic work as well besides football. Watt raised approximately $40 million for the affected victims of Hurricane Harvey in the Houston area. Additionally, he donated $1 million on his own.

As a result of his extraordinary efforts to help the people, Watt was named the Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year for 2017 and Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year.

Soon, Watt returned for the season opener and played against England Patriots.

Not only did he return from an injury, but he received the AFC Defensive Player of the Month for September after recording five sacks, 20 tackles, and four forced fumbles.

Also, he received the AFC Defensive Player of the Week after winning against the Tennessee Titans with nine tackles, 1.5 sacks, and a forced fumble.

Likewise, Watt earned his fifth First-Team All-Pro award after finishing the season with 16 sacks.

2019-2020

For the first time in all those years of his career, Watt finished a game in the season opener with no tackles and quarterback. However, two weeks later, Watt recorded two sacks against the Los Angeles Chargers.

In an unfortunate event, Watt suffered a torn pectoral and had to draw back from the season’s remainder.

Further on December 24, Watt resumed his practice with the team.

And on December 31, 2019, Watt was on the field in a Wild-card entry for the playoff against Buffalo Bills. Eventually, the Texans won over the Bills after a shoot-out goal.

Similarly, In Week 2 of the 2020 season, he recorded his first sack in a defeat against the Baltimore Ravens. Likewise, in Week 6, Watt scored his 99th career sack against the Tennessee Titans.

And even more so, in November 2020, Watt recorded his 100th career sack against the Jaguars. In addition, Watt has recorded a total of 504 tackles, 24 forced fumbles, and 16 fumbled recoveries as of Week 9 in 2020.

However, there are speculations that the Texans’ best defenseman might resign from the team, which has not been confirmed yet.

Contract with the Arizona Cardinal

Right with the start of March 2021, free-agent pass-rusher J.J.

Watt signed a two-year contract with the Arizona Cardinals. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, their deal was worth $31 million and includes $23 million guaranteed.

Initially, Watt had also posted his photo on Twitter before the deal suggesting the deal. Currently, he is to play alongside fellow pass-rusher Chandler Jones.

Right after his deal, one of the NFL reporters stated Watt to be one of the risky signings on the team. As per him, he had his last season with low scores and injuries, he will have a hard time fitting in with the team.

A little bit off the topic, right after J.J. left the Houston Texans, he was most expected to sign with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Furthermore, Sports Betting Dime had also listed the Bucs as the second highly odd team to sign in Watt.

Likewise, Sporting News also named the Bucs as the most appealing landing spot for Watt. However, Watt signed with Arizona at the end.

Injuries

Watt has faced numerous injuries to date which have had him out of the games. Additionally, Watt missed 13 games in 2016, 11 games in 2017, and eight games in 2019.

One of his foremost injuries was back on August 2, 2012, when he dislocated his left elbow.

As he suffered the injury during the training camp, he tore “all the ligaments” in the joint. Thus, he missed all preseason games.

Furthermore, he had a nose injury but he was fortunate to not miss out on any games. Later, on November 29, 2015, Watt had an abdomen muscle tear by grade 3.

During that time, he had struggled with a partially torn right adductor longus, a fully torn left adductor longus, and a fully torn left adductor pectineus in his inner thighs and groin, and left and right abdomen.

The same year in December, he also broke his hand during practice. Following it on July 20, 2016, Watt underwent surgery for a herniated disc in his back.

Although he was back on the field in no time, he again had to go for surgery just after playing three games. On September 10, 2017, Watt injured his left ring finger which was a slight dislocation.

Just a month later, he again had another surgery for the leg tibial plateau fracture. Right then, he missed out on eleven games in total.

Moving on to January 14, 2019, Watt underwent minor knee surgery. During the latter half of the year, he had torn pectoral in Week 8’s win over Oakland.

Exhaustingly, it was followed up by another surgery that missed him eight NFL games.

The Ultimate Game of Tag

J.J. has started filming his new FOX show, “Ultimate Tag,” with his NFL star siblings Derek and T.J. Watt. This show appears to be a competition-oriented show based on the popular playground game.

The last guy or woman standing as a winner will receive a $10,000 prize after overcoming all of the obstacles.

Overall, it is a television series about an obstacle course competition in American sports entertainment.

Personal Life and Marriage

J.J. Watt is a married man who married Kealia Mae Ohai, a professional soccer player. They tied the knot in the Bahamas earlier this year.

The couple had been dating for a long time before getting engaged in May of this year.

Kealia was born in Utah on January 31, 1992. She is presently a member of the National Women’s Soccer League’s Chicago Red Stars. Until 2019, she was a member of the Houston Dash.

Mrs. Watt has also represented the United States in international competitions and the Olympics. As a couple and as athletes, Justin and Kealia support and appreciate each other.

Furthermore, they have yet to become parents, leading one to believe that a child is on the way.

Both appear to be quite active with their sports/work and appear to be content at the moment. When the time comes, hopefully, they will make an announcement.

They do, however, have two gorgeous dogs named Tex and Finley.

He is a brilliant athlete and a husband, but he is also someone who takes a stand on his own.

Watt, for example, believes that rather than allowing people to speak for you, you should take your own viewpoint.

Consider the occasion when he stood for the national anthem during the incident. Kneeling down or not, he stated, should be decided by himself. He seemed to have assumed his own political beliefs and tweeted the following.

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Charities

Watt is a kind husband, son, and brother, but he is also a caring and generous human being in general.

Justin. J. Watt Foundation is his creation and he serves as its president.

The J.J. foundation focuses on giving middle-school students with after-school sporting experiences so that they can learn the value of cooperation, leadership, accountability, and work ethic in a safe atmosphere.

The organization, which was founded in 2010 with the tagline “Dream Big, Work Hard,” has raised more than $1 million since then.

Not to mention, in 2015, J.J. dressed up as Batman and visited a children’s hospital to brighten up the youngsters.

Similarly, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Watt has helped raise cash and donated to the victims of Hurricane Harvey, the victims of the El Paso shooting, and the Houston Food Bank for aid relief.

He is a man with a golden heart, to summarize his charity work.

Watt is helping to make the world a better place, despite the fact that he is involved in various humanitarian projects that are hidden from view.

Social Media Presence

His Facebook has 2 million followers, has 4 million Instagram followers and his Twitter has 5.5 million followers.