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Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Entertainment
Dan Lyons

JJ Watt Reveals Which NFL Team Earns His Fandom in Retirement

JJ Watt became a superstar with the Texans, and finished his career with the Cardinals. However, he’ll be rooting for a different team now that his NFL career is over, and it probably won’t come as a huge surprise.

Watt’s brothers, TJ and Derek, both play for the Steelers. TJ Watt has proven to be a similar defensive force to his older brother, tying the NFL single-season record with 22 1/2 sacks in 2021 and earning Defensive Player of the Year honors that year. He’s a three-time first-team All-Pro and five-time Pro Bowler. Derek Watt has been a fullback for the team since 2020, after beginning his career with the Chargers.

JJ still will likely have some love for Houston, especially after the franchise hired former Texans teammate DeMeco Ryans as its new coach. However, moving forward expect to see him in more black and yellow than anything else.

During an appearance on the Pardon My Take podcast, Watt was asked if he was going to attend Steelers games during the upcoming season.

“Absolutely, I’m a huge Steelers fan,” he responded. “Steelers, absolutely, I’m all-in on the Steelers.”

He will not, however, return to his childhood Packers fandom, he confirmed as well.

Watt, 33, walks away as a likely first-ballot Hall of Famer. With the Texans, he was named Defensive Player of the Year in 2012, ’14 and ’15, adding five first-team All-Pro selections and a slew of other awards during his tenure. In 2014, he became the first player with multiple 20-sack seasons.

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