A day after the Houston Texans were eliminated in the playoffs, defensive lineman J.J. Watt announced he will undergo surgery on Tuesday to repair a groin injury that he said he has been dealing with for over a month.
J.J. Watt will have groin surgery on Tuesday
Watt has been dealing with a groin injury for 6-7 weeks, but had to leave the game on Saturday when it became too painful.
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Watt was noticeably hobbled during a 30-0 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs and played in just 33 of 63 defensive snaps on Saturday, according to Pro Football Focus.
During the game, he went down several times and returned to the game after spending some time on the sideline, but eventually left the game for good after going down again. On Sunday, he said that it was an injury he has been dealing with for 6-7 weeks, but finally reached its breaking point against the Chiefs.
Watt also took a snap as a wildcat quarterback during the game, but the play ended with a 1-yard loss. He finished the game with just one tackle.
Despite the disappointing end to the postseason for the Texans, Watt is still the favorite to be named the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year for a third season in his career. He finished the year with a league-leading 17.5 sacks, joining Reggie White as the only two players to ever record 15 or more sacks in three of their first five NFL seasons.
Watt also dealt with a hand injury during the regular season after he broke it in a practice in December. He has started all 80 regular season games in the five seasons since he was drafted by the Texans in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft.
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