Fansided

J.J. Watt might miss start of regular season

By John Buhler

Oct 25, 2015; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt (99) looks on from the line of scrimmage against the Miami Dolphins during the second half at Sun Life Stadium. The Dolphins won 44-26. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 25, 2015; Miami Gardens, FL, USA; Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt (99) looks on from the line of scrimmage against the Miami Dolphins during the second half at Sun Life Stadium. The Dolphins won 44-26. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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J.J. Watt’s tweaked back that required surgery will have him out longer than expected. He’ll be out eight to 10 weeks and might miss regular season games.

Though it is not necessarily devastating news, but the Houston Texans are going to be without their star player defensive end J.J. Watt for the next few months. While it was initially reported by NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport that Watt would miss all of training camp and the preseason, Rapoport’s colleague at the NFL Network Mike Garafolo reports that Watt’s return to the Texans for Week 1 is “optimistic” and that he could miss a few regular season games.

What Garafolo is implying is that while Watt could be back in time to start the season, the eight to 10 week deadline means that Watt could miss up to the three games in 2016 for the Texans. Houston’s first three opponents are at home for the Chicago Bears (September 11th), at home for the Kansas City Chiefs (September 18th), and on the road versus the New England Patriots (September 25th). This timeline relates to the first report of his injury on late Thursday night, July 21st.

Houston should be able to survive a home game against a mediocre Bears team in Week 1 without Watt, but not having him available for the Chiefs in Week 2 doesn’t bode well for the Texans’ chances against one of the elite teams in the AFC.

On the road against New England is almost certainly a lost in most years outside of a few teams, but the Patriots won’t have starting quarterback Tom Brady available, as Brady will be serving the third of his four-game Deflategate suspension. Depending on how Brady’s backup Jimmy Garoppolo performs in the first few weeks, this game could be a toss-up given the strong defense of the Texans, even without Watt.

In short, Watt could be available to start Week 1 versus the Bears, but it’s all about how much strength he has in his surgically repaired back. If its worst case scenario, expect Watt to be back in the fold with the Texans for Week 4 at home versus AFC South division rival Tennessee Titans on October 2nd.

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