SANTA CLARA, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 08: J.J. Watt #99 of the Arizona Cardinals looks on after the game against the San Francisco 49ers at Levi’s Stadium on January 08, 2023 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
Former NFL star defensive end J.J. Watt considered coming out of retirement for two top AFC teams, according to the future Hall of Fame inductee himself.

During an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show”, the current CBS analyst and three-time Defensive Player of the Year revealed that he was looking at “the Texans and Steelers situations” during the 2023 season.

 

The 34-year-old Watt said, however, that “nothing ever escalated” on those fronts. He emphasized that he’s content with how things played out. When further pressed by the crew on if he’s actually done for good, Watt confirmed that this is indeed the case.

Watt could have certainly been a boost for both the Steelers and Texans, who made surprise returns to the postseason this past year. Seeing J.J. and younger brother T.J. play together would have been a dream for countless football fans, but nobody can fault the former for staying committed to his retirement decision.

And so, it appears as though Watt is 100 percent sold on his very own decision to stay retired. He left the game with 114.5 career sacks, 27 forced fumbles and 70 pass defenses to go along with those three DPOY awards.