J.J. Watt retired following the 2022 season, but that hasn’t stopped people from speculating that he might return to football at some point.
Watt is good friends with Pat McAfee, and in February, he said on McAfee’s show he is “absolutely” retired for good, though he did reveal he was “monitoring” the Houston Texans and Pittsburgh Steelers last season to see if a comeback opportunity presented itself.
Watt spent his first 10 NFL seasons in Houston, and Texans general manager Nick Caserio was asked during an appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show” Thursday if there was a chance Watt could rejoin the organization.
“I have a lot of respect and appreciation for J.J.,” Caserio said. “When I took the job in February of ’21, he was one of the first players that I actually spoke to.
“Certainly respectful of J.J., his career, what he’s done for the organization, what he’s done for the city of Houston. I’m not going to speak for him about what he wants to do relative of playing football. I’ll let him disclose that on your show.”
Caserio did go on to say he that it was “very early” and mentioned that sometimes players wait until the season gets going before coming back.
“Between him and [Tom] Brady, we’ll see who jumps back in first,” Caserio joked.
For now, it looks like Watt’s focus will remain on his gig as an analyst for CBS Sports.