Following his iconic twelve-season career as a star defensive end in the NFL, Justin James ‘J.J.’ Watt has formally announced his retirement from the game of football. The information was brought to light this past Tuesday, December 27, 2022, just weeks after his current franchise, the Arizona Cardinals, playoff contention was eliminated for the 2022-’23 postseason.
Watt went on to give a lengthy public statement on Wednesday (Dec. 28), shortly after the details hit the social media and the news outlets: “I’ve known for a little while. It feels like the right time. I’ve put so much into the game and the wins and the losses, the mental stress and passion that comes with it, it just weighs on you. It’s heavy, I mean it’s really heavy – The losses are very tough to take. You live with the highs and the lows, and I’ve always said that I’d rather live with the highs and the lows than never know in the middle.
He concluded, “I’ve got a son now. Obviously, I had a heart scare in the middle of the year, so there’s certainly some of that that played into it. But I’m very happy and am very at peace with it… I’d much rather go out playing good football knowing that I could still play and knowing that hopefully, people remember me playing good football than to go limping out, being forced out, and knowing that I probably should’ve done it earlier.”
The Pewaukee, Wisconsin-born athlete had an impressive career since initially being drafted into the league by the Houston Texans as the 11th overall selection in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft — Watt stayed loyal to Houston for ten seasons (2011-2020), before eventually signing a two-year contract (2021-2022) with the Arizona Cardinals in March of last year. Despite his retirement from his beloved sport, Watt still has an entire life ahead of him as football fans are anxious to see if the young 33-year-old talent will transfer to the football commentating scene instead.