J.J. Watt Stuns The NFL World With Subtle Retirement Announcement That Nobody Saw Coming

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J.J. Watt is calling it a career.

After 12 NFL seasons, which included three NFL Defensive Player of the Year awards and five Pro Bowl selections, Watt announced his retirement on Tuesday.

And he did so in the most J.J. Watt way possible. The Arizona Cardinals superstar posted a pair of pictures on Twitter with a subtle but important caption.

“Koa’s first ever NFL game. My last ever NFL home game. My heart is filled with nothing but love and gratitude. It’s been an absolute honor and a pleasure,” the tweet read.

The the first picture showed Watt alongside his wife, NWSL player Kealia, and their newborn son Koa. While the second showed the three of them alongside Watt’s parents, John and Connie.

Watt leaves the league with a laundry list of accolades and as a surefire Pro Football Hall of Fame selection down the line. He was a five-time first-team All-Pro selection. He twice led the league in sacks and finished as the runner-up for the league’s MVP award in 2014.

But Watt’s contributions extend off the field of play as well. He was named the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2017 thanks to work with various charities. Most notably, his charity work helped rebuild more than 1,000 homes in the Houston area following Hurricane Harvey.

Sports World Sends Well Wishes To JJ Watt After Retirement Announcement

His retirement, unsurprisingly, led to an outpouring of well-wishes from the NFL community and beyond.

While the timing of Watt’s retirement may seem surprising, it also makes a lot of sense giving what he’s gone through in the last year. Beyond becoming a father, Watt also suffered a scary heart problem earlier this season and needed to be shocked back into normal rhythm.

Despite the issue, Watt still managed to rack up 9.5 sacks and 14 tackles for loss in 14 games this season, showing that he’s still one of the best to ever do it.