Houston (CBS Houston) - The Houston Texans and J.J. Watt have agreed to a contract extension that will make Watt the highest paid defensive player in football.
The Houston Chronicle's John McClain first reported the extension of Watt.
According to McClain, Watt's new contract is a six year agreement worth $100 million and includes $51.876 million guaranteed. The guaranteed portion of the deal is the most money every guaranteed to a defensive player in NFL history.
Watt replaces former Texans defensive lineman, now Bills player, Mario Williams as the highest paid defensive player in the NFL.
He voiced his opinion on his contract situation in Denver earlier in training camp when the Texans were visiting the Broncos for joint practices. Watt said he would like the same amount of appreciation showed to him by the Texans that other teams who had extended 2011 draft picks had showcased.
The extension is not surprising, but wasn't a typical Texans operating procedure. Rick Smith is thought to have a guideline of saving contract extension talk for the final year of a player's current deal. Watt was under contract for next year and the team possessed the opportunity to franchise tag him for multiple years past next year.
Superstars are the exception. Andre Johnson was extended with more than one year left on his deal and the same courtesy was extended to Watt as well.
Watt was the team's first round selection in the 2011 draft. His rookie year saw him produce five and a half sacks, 56 tackles, and 4 pass deflections during the regular season. His interception for a touchdown against the Bengals was an instrumental play in the Texans securing their first playoff victory in franchise history.
2012 saw one of the best seasons ever by a defensive player. Watt quadrupled his pass deflections, added 25 more tackles and finished the year with 20.5 sacks. He was named the NFL's defensive player of the year in 2012.
2013 saw his raw numbers drop from his historic season the year before, but he still remained one of the most effective and terrorizing defensive players in the game.
Watt has made his love of Houston no secret. He mentions it as home as he does with Wisconsin. His charity runs functions in this city and has seen exponential growth during its Houston operations.
Over the weekend at one the said charity functions, Watt said, with his trademark smirk, he would 'like it very much' if he could spend his future in Houston.
There's plenty to like if you are the Texans and J.J. Watt. He gets to extend his stay with the only professional organization he has played for, and in a place he calls home. The Texans avoid the sometimes nasty areas contract negotiations can venture to while keeping the best defensive player in football with the organization.
Get in touch with Cody Stoots on Twitter - @Cody_Stoots
Posted by Unknown on Monday, September 1, 2014 - Rating: 4.5
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