Houston Texans: Can J.J. Watt Maintain His Production?
Nov 30, 2014; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt (99) reacts after the game against the Tennessee Titans at NRG Stadium. The Texans beat the Titans 45-21. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
The year is 2022.
Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt just broke the all-time NFL career sack record after his ninth straight season of 20.5 sacks, and is being considered as possibly the greatest defender to ever play the game of football.
This sounds exactly like a dream come true to many football fans in the southern part of Texas. But is it really a possibility?
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Let’s go back to the present day and reality. It’s 2015, and Watt is not only considered one of the best defenders in the game right now, he’s arguably the league’s best player overall. He just finished a season that saw him accumulate 20.5 sacks and earn NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors for the second time in three years.
He just won the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award for the second time in his career. And as Tania Ganguli of ESPN.com pointed out in February, he received more votes for NFL MVP than any defensive player has since 1999 when the number of MVP voters was reduced to 50.
SEE MORE: Where Does J.J. Watt Rank Among The Greatest Defenders Of All Time?
He had a historic season, and he’s shown that this isn’t a fluke, as he also recorded 20.5 sacks in 2012, when he won his first Defensive Player of the Year award. The question remains however, can J.J. Watt keep up this level of production? To answer this, I want to see how his statistics to this point in his career match up against some of the league’s all-time greats.
Next: How Does J.J. Watt Compare To Other Great Pass-Rushers?