The Houston Texans could be getting a major boost to their lineup in advance of what they hope is another trip to the playoffs.
A report from the NFL Network on Saturday morning indicated that the Texans plan on activating defensive end J.J. Watt from the injured reserve either prior to their week 17 game or in advance of a potential playoff game.
Watt left the Texans week eight game just prior to halftime with a pectoral injury. He had surgery shortly after and tweeted out that he expected to miss the remainder of the season recovering from the injury and procedure.
This game can be beautiful and it can also be brutal. Absolutely gutted that I won’t be able to finish the season with my guys and give the fans what they deserve. I truly love this game and can’t stand letting you guys down. Thank you for all of the thoughts & well-wishes.
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) October 28, 2019
Watt is currently on the team’s injured reserve list, though the team still has the option of activating him following week 16. The team has the ability to designate two players for return from the injured list over the course of the season. They used one on Jordan Thomas who was activated several weeks ago, but have held on to the other option to keep open the possibility of a return for Watt.
Watt still leads the team with 20 quarterback hits and had 3.5 sacks in his eight games prior to the injury.
I was talking about these @JJWatt tweets earlier this week, which seemed an obvious indication of his return. This morning @RapSheet reported he is, in fact, expected be activated for the season finale or the playoff opener. pic.twitter.com/Qe25xAuZAO
— Adam Wexler (@KPRC2AdamW) December 21, 2019