Cardinals used blitz package on Watt
Relentless recruiting to lure DE included Hopkins, Murray
Before J.J. Watt surprisingly revealed he was joining the Arizona Cardinals, the former Texans defensive end executed a clandestine operation worthy of a spy movie.
Because Watt wanted to control his narrative before signing a twoyear, $31 million contract, he ordered shirts for the four or five NFL teams he was considering. Watt was concerned word would leak out if he ordered them personally, so he had his brother’s high school friend order them to keep it a secret.
Watt posted a photograph on social media Monday morning of himself wearing a Cardinals shirt while lifting weights to make his announcement.
“It’s kind of funny, kind of stupid,” Watt said during his introductory news conference Tuesday in Tempe, Ariz., after being courted by multiple teams, including Green Bay, Cleveland, Tennessee and Buffalo. “We kept it very quiet. There were a lot of rumors and reports; we knew who actually was in it. It was funny to sit back and watch it all play out. At the end, when I decided Arizona was the place, we realized how quiet it had truly been on that front. I said, ‘I think I’m going to announce it on my own.’
“They attacked from all angles. The recruiting pitch was strong and heavy, but at the end of the day, I told my wife all signs just kept pointing back here to Arizona. I couldn’t be happier with my decision.”
There was a recurring theme from Watt as he expressed a lot of emotions. Chief among them: happiness.
Now with the Cardinals, Watt reflected on his decade with the Texans after being drafted in the first round in 2011 out of Wisconsin. Watt was cut by the Texans, at his request, in January when they terminated the final year of his $100 million contract. The Cardinals gave Watt $23 million guaranteed over his two-year pact.
Watt acknowledged how tough it was to move on. The frustration and anger that built steadily within him during a 4-12 season and his
not wanting to be part of a potential rebuilding situation were major factors in his decision to leave Houston.
“It was extremely difficult,” Watt said. “Ten years with Houston and the relationship that was built and the bond that I feel with that city is unlike anything I ever could’ve imagined or expected, and I realize that’s special and that’s rare, and I’m so thankful for it. I truly feel like the city of Houston is my family. Those people will forever have a place in my heart, and I will forever consider it a home.
“Nobody can really understand it unless you were there and been through it. I will love that place forever. Moving on was difficult to do. It’s never easy, but very excited about the new beginning here in Arizona.”
The familiar schemes of Cardinals defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, a former Texans secondary coach, the presence of pass rusher Chandler Jones and safety Budda Baker, the recruiting efforts of former Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, and the skill of quarterback Kyler Murray also played large roles in Watt’s decision.
“The longer I looked at it, the more it just — signs kept pointing back down here,” Watt said. “There’s a lot of exciting things about what’s happening down here in Arizona. I’ve always said you have to have a quarterback in this league to have a chance, and there’s a young, extremely talented quarterback here who can do big things and can take an even bigger jump to continue to grow and progress.”
Watt first met Murray in 2015 when the former top overall pick was a high school senior in Allen and the NFL veteran presented him with the Gatorade Player of the Year award. Watt texted Murray: “I’m here because I believe in you.”
Watt was recruited by multiple players around the league, including his brothers Derek and T.J. with the Steelers and wide receiver Stefon Diggs of the Bills.
Via private message, Jones offered his services to Watt as a personal chef, with Watt telling him after agreeing to terms that he wants a Beef Wellington dish.
Hopkins, traded to the Cardinals last year, made his own sales pitch to Watt.
“It never hurts to have one of the best wide receivers in the game going out there and stumping for you, especially a guy who’s a friend that I’ve known for a very long time,” Watt said. “It doesn’t hurt to have a guy that can catch a ball anywhere on the field and score touchdowns and catch a Hail Mary over three guys. I’m very excited to be back on the team with him. I’m very excited to be able to have a front row seat to watching the plays that he makes, especially with him and Kyler connecting.”
Watt, who recorded a Texans-record 101 sacks, played in every game last season and led a bad defense with five sacks and 17 quarterback hits.
“Make no mistake, I’m here to dominate on the field and help us win games,” Watt said.
Watt never reached the AFC Championship Game with the Texans, the only AFC South team that hasn’t advanced that far in the postseason. The Cardinals were an 8-8 team last season, fading after a 6-3 start. They play in a tough NFC West Division.
“We have one goal in mind,” Watt said. “You don’t set your goal for the championship four, five, six years down the road. You set it for this year.”
During the news conference, Watt expressed gratitude toward Marshall Goldberg’s daughter, Ellen Goldberg Tullos, for granting permission for him to wear the retired No. 99 jersey of her late father, a four-time All-Pro running back for the Cardinals from 1939-48, when they were based in Chicago.
“We had a great conversation,” Watt said. “She believes her father would be honored, and she believes that her father was all about the players, and so she said that she thought he would want me to wear it.
“I’m very honored and touched that they thought of me in that way and that I can do that, so I told her that I would do everything in my power to honor him and to make him proud and make his legacy proud.”
Watt turned very serious when asked how much he has left in the tank, replying: “A lot. I’ve got a whole lot left.”