J.J. Watt, Houston Texans. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
J.J. Watt claps back at fan who doesn’t understand why players kneel.
There is a reason J.J. Watt is the face of the Houston Texans franchise.
Even though quarterback Deshaun Watson is the better player these days, Watt remains the greatest player in the history of this NFL franchise. On Friday, Texans head coach Bill O’Brien was in the news because he reportedly will kneel during the playing of the national anthem in support of his players and the Black Lives Matter movement. He’s the first coach to say this.
O’Brien will get crucified for this by bigoted football fans who refuse to understand what’s really going on here. Football is everything in Texas. It is a massive state in size and population which has mostly conservative leanings outside of the state capital of Austin. If you have any doubt on where Watt is leaning in all this, get a load of this quote tweet he sent at noon on Saturday.
In a response to a fan who doesn’t think Watt has the stones to kneel during the playing of the national anthem, Watt offered a two-pronged response: “A) don’t speak for me B) if you still think it’s about disrespecting the flag or our military, you clearly haven’t been listening.”
J.J. Watt will support his teammates, coach in Black Lives Matter movement.
Watt is already a five-time All-Pro and Pro Bowler during his nine-year NFL career out of Wisconsin. He has been named NFL Defensive Player of the Year on three occasions. Watt has led the league in sacks twice, made the NFL 2010s All-Decade Team and was the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2017. Simply put, he’s an incredible player and an even more incredible person.
Watt may not have a Super Bowl ring, but he’s already a first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Famer six years after he does decide to hang up his spikes. Though he has had his issues physically in the last five years, Watt remains the vocal leader of the Texans and in the Houston community. Together, Watt, O’Brien and the rest of the Texans have the power to implement change.
Houston plays its Week 1 game at the place where the Texans’ season ended ago: at Arrowhead Stadium to the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs. It will be a nationally-televised primetime game on a Thursday night will football fans all over the world watching. If the Texans kneel during the playing of the national anthem as a team, it’ll upset a lot of racist people.
There’s a reason Watt is football royalty in Houston, as his latest tweet is another example of that.