Watt chooses Cardinals

DE J.J. Watt is signing with the Cardinals, he reports. Multiple other reports say it's a 2-year deal worth $31 million, with $23 million of that guaranteed. (So it sounds like a pact he's likely to complete.) Watt will join an Arizona defense that jumped from 20th in Football Outsiders DVOA in 2019 to 10th last season. The Cardinals also tied for 10th among fantasy defenses, by ESPN scoring. Watt looked past his prime last season but should still upgrade an unspectacular D-line and enhance a Chandler Jones-led pass rush.

Cardinals DE J.J. Watt will have surgery on the shoulder injury that had already ruled him out for Thursday night's game against the Packers. According to multiple reports, this is likely to end Watt's season. NFL Netwrok's Ian Rapoport reports that Watt will likely need "at least" 3 months to recover. Watt reportedly hurt the shoulder in the 2nd quarter of the Week 7 win over Houston but played through it for the 2nd half. Watt's contract looks locked in with Arizona through next year.

The Cardinals have ruled DE J.J. Watt out for Thursday night's game against the Packers because of a shoulder injury. We had Watt low in the Week 8 DL rankings anyway, so this shouldn't be a huge loss for IDP lineups.

The Cardinals on Monday activated DE J.J. Watt off the PUP list. Watt had been easing back in after he hurt a hamstring during the conditioning test at the start of camp. "We wanted to make sure we were really cautious, make sure he felt 100 percent before we got him back out there," HC Kliff Kingsbury said before practice, per ESPN's Josh Weinfuss. Watt added: "We definitely took our time." Barring some setback, expect Watt to be ready for the season.

The Cardinals placed DE J.J. Watt on the PUP list Wednesday after the veteran experienced hamstring soreness following Tuesday's conditioning test. According to ESPN's Josh Weinfuss, Watt said he doesn't expect to practice Thursday and isn't sure when he'll return to the field. "We're gonna take it very slow and be very smart about it," Watt said. We'll keep an eye on the situation, but there's no reason for panic at this point.

The Texans are releasing DE J.J. Watt, according to multiple reports. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Watt asked the team to release him, marking yet another star player looking to get out of Houston. Watt has clearly slipped from the dominant form of his early seasons, but he remains a productive player and should find plenty of potential suitors. We'll see where the veteran lands -- and the size of his next contract -- before projecting his IDP outlook for 2021 and beyond.