J.J. Watt: 5 Most memorable Houston Texans games

1. J.J. Watt Memorable Games: Jan. 15, 2012 at Baltimore Ravens

J.J. Watt still remembers his first interaction with the Houston fanbase. When he was drafted in 2011, there are famous videos of Texans’ fans greeting the selection with loud boos. Watt was a converted tight end that only had 11.5 sacks in his collegiate career … was he really worth the 11th overall selection in the NFL Draft?

It didn’t take very long for Watt to hush these critics, and his breakout party was in the 2012 playoffs. The Texans finished the season with a 10-6 record which solidified them as AFC South champions. While Watt flashed plenty during the regular season, he totally burst onto the scene during the playoffs.

In the Wild Card game against the Cincinnati Bengals, J.J. Watt intercepted a pass late into the first half which he returned for a touchdown to give the Texans a 17-10 lead. The Bengals didn’t score the rest of the game as the Texans ended up with a resounding 31-10 triumph.

Watt was somehow even better in the next week. In the Divisional Round game against the Baltimore Ravens, Watt was an absolute force as he finished with 12 tackles and 2.5 sacks. While the Texans came up short in a defensive slugfest, these two games highlighted the emergence of Watt.

After the draft pick was met with skepticism and doubt, Watt put the rest of the league on notice. Watt built off the momentum he built for himself in the 2012 playoffs by winning three of the next four NFL Defensive Player of the Year awards.

Any time your team loses in the playoffs it is disappointing, but the loss to Baltimore stung just a little bit less for the Texans as they realized they had a future superstar on their hands.