Arizona Cardinals Defensive Lineman J.J. Watt to Miss Remainder of Preseason

Arizona Cardinals defensive lineman J.J. Watt will miss the final two games of the preseason after testing positive for COVID. The team shared the news in the hours preceding their Sunday Night Football game against the Baltimore Ravens:

After testing positive for COVID, JJ Watt will not be present for tonight’s game vs Baltimore nor the team’s trip to Tennessee this week.
— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) August 21, 2022

The Cardinals acquired Watt last offseason on a two-year, $31 million dollar deal, hoping he could rediscover the overwhelming power and production that made him a superstar for the Houston Texans. But the availability issues that haunted him in Houston followed him to Arizona, and he only appeared in seven games during the 2021 regular season. There is no indication that his current ailment should derail his readiness for this year's opener, but any absences should raise eyebrows for fans of the five-time All-Pro, who has missed 42 games over the last six seasons.

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Watt has been the subject of a little bit of historic reevaluation ever since his brother T.J. Watt of the Pittsburgh Steelers took the time to sing his praises. The first player to win Associate Press Defensive Player of the Year awards three times since New York Giants legend Lawrence Taylor, J.J. Watt combined a deadly ability to rush the passer with a unique talent to break up passes at the line of scrimmage, compiling an incredible 74.5 sacks and 45 pass deflections across his first five seasons. But since his dominant start, he has been plagued by injury after injury, resulting in only two seasons starting 16 games in the past seven years.

When available, Watt remains an effective and confounding chess piece on defense. The Cardinals hope he can still provide a valuable return on their investment, and maybe even reward his brother's faith while he's at it.