Super Bowl 58 is here, and it’s going to be a showdown between the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs. As a part of the Super Bowl coverage, J.J. Watt will be a part of the CBS crew.
In the run-up to the Super Bowl, Watt was asked about moving from the gridiron into the broadcast. What’d he have to say?
J.J. Watt’s Transition From the Gridiron to the Broadcast Booth
Watt spent 12 seasons in the NFL, primarily with the Houston Texans. During his career, he put up Hall of Fame-type results. He was a five-time Pro Bowler, five-time first-team All-Pro, three-time Defensive Player of the Year, two-time second-team All-Pro, and two-time NFL sack leader. He was also named to the NFL’s 2010s All-Decade team.
To win all of those awards, he had to put up some crazy numbers. In 151 games, he had 586 tackles, 114.5 sacks, 27 forced fumbles, 79 pass deflections, and two interceptions. He also had three receiving touchdowns.
However, Watt retired from football following the 2022 season. Shortly after his retirement, he announced he would be joining the CBS crew as an NFL analyst during the 2023 season. Now, he will be involved in his first-ever Super Bowl — as a player or broadcaster.
“Days I don’t say anything stupid on the air,” Watt said when asked what a win is like in the booth. “The thing that I always hate is when we have to make picks like we don’t do it terribly often on our show.”
“I take it much more just one day at a time,” Watt said. “I think I just enjoy being around the guys. I just enjoy being around the NFL, being around football. It’s a great way to kind of scratch that football itch.”
“I certainly consider it,” Watt said in the same interview, asked if he would ever consider becoming an announcer. A move of this sort would be similar to what Tom Brady is doing with Fox Sports starting in the 2024 season. “I dabbled very, very briefly with the Texans-Steelers game this last year for a few minutes, but I really did enjoy that.”
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When Watt announced his new job with CBS, he had a typo, posting: “I just got a job at CVS” on X (formerly known as Twitter). Later, he fixed the typo and shared a tip: “Little pro tip for anyone out there starting a new job: don’t screw up the announcement,” Watt said. “It’s not a good way to start your first day on the job.”
The Super Bowl kicks off Sunday, Feb. 11, at 6:30 p.m. ET. Watt will be a part of the pre-game show as well as the halftime and post-game shows, as he has done all season long for CBS.
As the 2023 NFL season comes to a close, the 2024 NFL Draft is on the horizon. Pro Football Network has you covered with everything from team draft needs to the Top 100 prospects available. Plus, fire up PFN’s Mock Draft Simulator to put yourself in the general manager’s seat and make all the calls!