Elite Former All-Pro Defensive End To Retire After 2022 Season
Arizona Cardinals and five-time First-team All-Pro Defensive End J.J. Watt announced in a tweet on Tuesday morning that he would be retiring at the end of the 2022 season.
An All-Pro On And Off The Field
In a heartfelt tweet, J.J. Watt announced to the world that this season would be his last season in a football uniform. The tweet reads, “Koa’s first ever game. My last ever NFL home game. My heart is filled with nothing but love and gratitude. It’s been an honor and a pleasure.” With a picture of his family on the field at Sunday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Koa’s first ever NFL game. My last ever NFL home game. My heart is filled with nothing but love and gratitude. It’s been an absolute honor and a pleasure. 🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/wXbDUcHM8B — JJ Watt (@JJWatt) December 27, 2022
Watt is one of the greatest defensive players ever to play football and should be a first-ballot Hall of Famer when eligible in five years. He is one of the greatest on and off the field, winning the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award in 2017. In addition, Watt is the president and founder of the Justin J. Watt Foundation, a charity organization providing after-school activities and athletics in a safe environment. Watt also raised $37 million to help Houston recover from Hurricane Harvey.
The Accolades
J.J. Watt is one of the most decorated players in NFL history. Watt is a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year (2012, 2014, 2015), one of only three players ever to conquer that feat. Watt has 111.5 sacks in his career, with him sitting at 26th all-time on the career sacks list. There’s only one player to record at least 20 sacks in multiple seasons, and J.J. Watt holds that title.
Watt is a five-time First-team All-Pro, and a two-time Second-team All-Pro Defensive Lineman. A five-time Pro Bowler and a two-time NFL sacks leader. J.J. was also a unanimous selection to the NFL 2010s All-Decade team. J.J. Watt received 26% of the vote share for MVP in 2014; that’s the highest a defensive player had received since 1986 when Lawrence Taylor won the MVP.
Conclusion
It is a rough and sad day for any football fan. If you watched football in the 2010s, J.J. Watt was one of the most dominant players on either side of the ball ever. He was an absolute problem for any team during his prime years; unfortunately, injuries got the best of him, making it a massive what-if on records he could have broken. However, the accolades will speak for themselves, and he has two games to improve his impressive resume. I wish former All-Pro J.J. Watt the best in his retirement for him and his family.