Arizona Cardinals star edge rusher and likely future first ballot Hall of Famer J.J. Watt likely wouldn’t have played in the final two preseason games in the first place.
Watt has already proven himself capable of going out there without much play and performing well in actual meaningful football games.
With that said, he will not be on the field Sunday evening against the Baltimore Ravens or to close out the exhibition slate against the Tennessee Titans after testing positive for COVID-19.
True to his nature, Watt had a pretty hilarious response to Arizona’s announcement immediately ahead of kickoff against the Ravens.
This stems from a social media post last week in which Watt asked for help to get a baby rattlesnake out of his Arizona-based bathroom. No, the snake did not give Watt COVID-19. We just want to clarify that it was a joke.
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J.J. Watt needs to return to form for the Arizona Cardinals
After spending the first decade of his career with the Houston Texans, Watt signed on with the Cardinals ahead of last season. He played just seven games due to injury, recording 10 quarterback hits and one sack in the process. All said, the 33-year-old former Wisconsin star has registered 10 sacks over the past three seasons after absolutely dominating earlier in his career.
- J.J. Watt stats (2011-2018): 244 QB hits, 154 tackles for loss, 92.0 sacks, 22 forced fumbles
Arizona boasts division title aspirations in a top-heavy NFC West that includes the defending Super Bowl champion Los Angeles Rams and reigning conference runner-up San Francisco 49ers.
The Cardinals will need to get a consistent pass rush in order to compete with those two teams. That’s especially true with the likes of Cooper Kupp, Allen Robinson, George Kittle, Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk as skill position players for the Rams and 49ers.
The good news? J.J. Watt is healthy and in the prime of his life. He’ll be just fine and ready for Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs.