Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt and Kansas City Chiefs left tackle Eric Fisher have had a long history together.
For one season in 2007, Watt and Fisher were teammates at Central Michigan. The Texans drafted Watt in Round 1 of the 2011 NFL draft, and the Chiefs brought Fisher into the league as the No. 1 overall pick in 2013. Since then, they have faced one another four times with Fisher’s team going 3-1 but Watt being effective with 4.5 sacks.
“They know each other,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid told reporters Wednesday. “There’s a battle that goes on. Because of that, it’s a fun thing to watch. J.J. has gotten a few. Eric has gotten a few. It’s a good battle. It will be on Sunday.”
Watt and Fisher did not get a chance to go at each other in the Week 6 encounter between the Texans and Chiefs on Oct. 13 at Arrowhead Stadium. Fisher was out with a groin injury as Houston prevailed 31-24.
Now, Watt is the one who is dealing with injuries as he has played one game since returning from his torn pectoral on Oct. 27. Though Watt played 52 snaps in the Texans’ 22-19 overtime win against the Buffalo Bills in the wild-card round, the three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year does not know how much he will play in the AFC divisional.
“I’m not sure,” Watt told reporters Wednesday .”We’ll have a plan. Just because I played one game doesn’t mean my pec magically healed. It’s still in basically the same situation it was in before this game, and obviously we played a little bit more in the last game than we expected to.
“So, it’s just a matter of making sure we have a good plan, sticking to the plan and doing what we need to do all week long to make sure it’s where it needs to be.”
If Watt and Fisher do have the chance to go after one another, there will be more on the line than just a trip to the AFC Championship Game.
“There’s that personal side of it, too, where they know each other, that makes it even better,” Reid said. “I wouldn’t say one is over the other. I think they both get after each other. If you have eyes for the O and D-line, that’s a good one to watch.”