This is truly a sad day for football.
Arizona Cardinals defensive end J.J. Watt has announced his retirement, which will become official at the end of the 2022 season.
The future Pro Football Hall of Famer tweeted Dec. 27 that he has officially played his last NFL home game.
“My heart is filled with nothing but love and gratitude,” said Watt. “It’s been an absolute honor and a pleasure.”
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.
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) December 27, 2022
The 33-year-old J.J. Watt’s last season is one of his better ones, with a stat line of 9.5 sacks, 14 tackles for loss, as well as 33 tackles. Altogether, Watt has played 12 seasons in the National Football League, which features 107.5 sacks total and 514 tackles — 387 of them solo. Just an absolutely incredible career, according to NFL.com.
Coming into the league with the Houston Texas, Watt has racked up three Defensive Player of the Year awards, and he also won the 2017 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year.
The Daily Caller reported previously on how J.J. Watt appeared on camera as if he were leaving the Arizona Cardinals franchise, but we now know that he is calling it a career after his latest announcement, which will be effective at the end of the campaign.(RELATED: J.J. Watt’s Reaction Walking Off The Field Has Many Skeptical That He Could Soon Be Done With The Arizona Cardinals)
Damn, this is sad.
I’ve always liked J.J. Watt, he’s been a monster throughout literally his entire career. I was just writing recently about how I was hoping my Miami Dolphins would go after his services in free agency, but my man is calling it a day, and on the top of his game at that. That’s the thing, Watt could keep playing if he wanted to, he’s still elite. Maybe he just wants to preserve his body, and I’m not going to knock him for that, but it’s still sad to see him go.
I wish you nothing but the best, J.J.