J.J. Watt follows Tom Brady's footsteps as Texans Ring of Honor member takes on new role

On Wednesday, CBS Sports announced on Wednsday that three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year and Houston Texans Ring of Honor member J.J. Watt will have an increased role at the network for the next NFL season.

CBS tweeted that Watt will join play-by-play commentator Ian Eagle in the booth next season in a game analyst role:

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"JJ Watt Named NFL ON CBS Game Analyst; Will Call Games with Ian Eagle Beginning with the 2025-26 Season."

Watt is among the recent wave of former NFL legends and players moving into commentary roles after their careers end.

The most notable example of the trend is former New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady joining the Fox Sports announcing team, alongside Kevin Burkhardt, as a game analyst. Brady is widely regarded as the greatest QB and football player in NFL history.

Numerous former players have moved into network analyst roles since retiring from the game, including Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo (CBS), St. Louis Rams QB Kurt Warner (NFL Network) and Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen (Fox).

Is J.J. Watt on CBS Sports' lead commentary team?

J.J. Watt will not be a member of the lead CBS Sports NFL crew during the 2025 season. Instead, he will be joining the No. 2 commentary team.

CBS Sports' lead commentary team features legendary play-by-play commentator Jim Nantz, alongside game analyst Tony Romo and reporter Tracy Wolfson.

The move comes as CBS Sports’ lead college football analyst, Gary Danielson, announced his retirement following the conclusion of the 2025 season. CBS announced via social media that Charles Davis will fill the role left by the departing Danielson.

As a result, the departure of Davis to college football left open a role on CBS's No. 2 commentary team, a job that has now been confirmed to be Watt's, beginning in the 2025 NFL season.

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