J.J. Watt announces he will retire after 2022 NFL season originally appeared on NBC Sports Chicago
J.J. Watt is calling it a career.
The Arizona Cardinals defensive end announced his retirement from the NFL on Tuesday after 12 years in the league. He will finish out the final two games of the 2022 season before officially hanging up his cleats.
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Watt previously played for the Houston Texans, where he was a three-time Defensive Player of the Year (2012, 2014, 2015), five-time Pro Bowler (2012-15, 2018) and five-time First-team All-Pro (2012-15, 2018). He finished second in MVP voting in 2014 and was named Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year in 2017.
After 10 years with the Texans, Watt played his final two seasons with the Cardinals. Watt will turn 34 in March, but he's had another standout season for Arizona in 2022. He has 9.5 sacks through 14 games, which is already his most in a season since 2018.
The Wisconsin alum has 111.5 career sacks, 580 combined tackles and 313 quarterback hits in 149 games, with just two more to play. The totals would've been even higher if not for a variety of injuries, which caused him to miss 42 games since 2016 after not missing a game in his first five seasons.
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Regardless of the injuries, Watt is a lock for the Pro Football Hall of Fame when he becomes eligible.
