I'm pulling for JJ but let's be real here - he's facing some pretty long odds. Those two back surgeries are a particular concern. His super positive attitude is to be commended.
790 said JJ appears his old self in practice. We'll see how real games go though. If he wins another DPOY or goes All-Pro... oh, man. Watt and Tiger set to complete the comeback.
JJ Watt has proved that he is an all-time great level, superhuman type football player. If ever there was anyone that could come back from what Watt has been through, it's JJ. Gronk has come back from some bad injuires. No reason to believe JJ can't. JJ is about to light the city, and the NFL world, on fire this year. Don't sleep on him being the odds on favorite in Vegas for DPOY.
Hearing consistent reports from multiple different sources (790, John Harris, Pat D Star, etc.) that JJ looks like his old self and has been a one man wrecking crew makes me a lot more confident than I was at this point last year. Las year it seemed like everyone was saying that he was in great shape and that they believed he would come back better than ever. But it didn’t seem like there was much evidence of him dominating O-lineman during training camp (especially joint practices).
Even last year when he wasn't getting sack numbers, watt played well. He was getting pressure and was good against the run. It sounds like he is even healther now. that said, back injuries and back surgeries are always scary
I've always maintained that the "best" thing about the knee/leg injury is that it gave him almost an extra full year to rest the back... which probably needed more recovery time than what he took last off-season.
Just like everyone else here, I'm trying not to get hyped from the positive words coming out of camp about his return. The one thing I do remember is while he was "healthy" last year, he never looked like himself throughout training camp. There were a few remarks about how he didn't look to have the same conditioning level as previous years. He wasn't nearly as "cut" as he is this year. It looked like he wasn't in his typical form, a little soft, a little sluggish. He did get pressure those first couple of games, but his burst off the line wasn't what it always had been. From what they've been saying about this preseason, he looks exactly like he's always looked. However, the question will always be about the durability of his back. Taking a "defacto" 2 years off would most definitely help in those regards. You simply can't count the guy out just yet.
