The Houston Texans got a Christmas miracle when defensive end J.J. Watt returned to practice on Dec. 24, nearly two full months after tearing his pectoral muscle on Oct. 27 in a 27-24 win over the Oakland Raiders.
What would have been a season-ending injury for some was just a midseason interruption for Watt, and his return to practice was both exciting yet not surprising to Pro Bowl quarterback Deshaun Watson.
“I mean, it’s dope but it doesn’t catch me by surprise because that’s the type of person he is, to do whatever he can to help this football team and get back out there with his brothers,” Watson told reporters on Dec. 26. “I know at the early (part) of the rehab and surgery, it was definitely a thought that he probably wouldn’t be able to play the rest of this year, but I guarantee whenever he had his surgery and the doctors told him he had a chance and gave him a timeline, if he did everything right, that he was going to do that.”
Watt’s rehabilitation took place inside Texans facilities at NRG Stadium, and he was around the team constantly. It would have been hard to conceal Watt’s progress or that he was eyeing a comeback.
“You could see it,” said Watson. “He was in here every day with us, still in the meeting rooms, still rehabbing, working out, still around the locker room, so it was definitely passionate and very strict priority for him to be able to get back out there.”
The Texans won’t have Watt for the Week 17 finale against the Tennessee Titans Sunday at 3:25 p.m., but they are expecting to have him for the Texans’ wild-card weekend game (Jan. 4-5). Adding a pass rushing presence such as Watt would be quite the boost for a defense that enters the last week of the regular season with the eighth-fewest sacks in the NFL with 31.