JJ Watt officially announces retirement from NFL with heartwarming post: "Koa’s first ever game. My last ever home game"
JJ Watt has announced that he is retiring after this season. With two weeks left in the Arizona Cardinals' season and no playoffs coming after that, the former Defensive Player of the Year is calling it a career.
The Arizona Cardinals went to overtime with Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but couldn't finish them off. As it turns out, that will be the last time Watt plays in front of his home fans, as he mentioned on Twitter.
🏼
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.
🙏🏼 https://t.co/wXbDUcHM8B
Watt tweeted:
"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."
It was his newborn son's first time ever attending an NFL game. Watt will not be playing when he is old enough to experience, remember and enjoy the games, but it was a monumental milestone nonetheless.
For Watt, it marked the final time fans would be cheering for his team in the stands and he decided to make the sneaky retirement announcement based on that first milestone.
The legendary defensive end will face the Atlanta Falcons and San Francisco 49ers to cap off his iconic career.
How many seasons has JJ Watt played in the NFL?
JJ Watt has amassed 12 years playing in the NFL. His first 10 were spent with the Houston Texans, where he was the heart and soul of that defense He terrorized opposing quarterbacks all game long.
He joined the Arizona Cardinals for what ended up being the final two seasons of his illustrious career.
He recorded 111.5 sacks throughout those 12 seasons, with potentially more to come in the remaining two games. He recorded a career-high 20.5 sacks in 2012.
Watt, who was nicknamed "JJ Swat", became known for batting passes down at the line of scrimmage. He earned 69 pass deflections and two interceptions.
He even played a bit of offense, catching three touchdown passes over his career. JJ Watt was five-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro. He won DPOY three times, too.