The Houston Texans have been one of the worst teams in the NFL this season. Bill O’Brien’s questionable decisions in the offseason took a massive toll on the team’s ability to compete at the highest level, and they’ve been eliminated from playoff contention for weeks now.
Then again, the Texans were expected to beat the depleted Cincinnati Bengals at home during Week 16. In fact, they entered that game favored by 7.5 points, yet they suffered another embarrassing 37-31 loss.
Deshaun Watson has been stellar all year long but their defense just hasn’t been able to get stops, and that’s why veteran star JJ Watt felt like he owed it to the fans to issue a heartfelt apology for not putting in the work they deserve.
JJ Watt Rants About Losing And Storms Out Of Press Conference
Watt addressed the media following his team’s loss and was nearly brought to tears of anger and frustration for the way they’ve performed this season, sharing his thoughts before storming out of the room:
(Transcript viaJoe Gleason of KTRK)
“If you can’t come in and put work in in the building, go out to the practice field and work hard, do your lifts and do what you’re supposed to do, you should not be here. This is a job. We are getting paid a whole lot of money.
There are a lot of people that watch us and invest their time and their money into buying our jerseys and buying a whole bunch of sh*t, and they care about it. They care every single week. We’re in Week 16, and we’re 4-11, and there’s fans that watch this game, that show up to the stadium, that put in time and energy and effort and care about this.
So, if you can’t go out there and you can’t work out, you can’t show up on time, you can’t practice, you can’t want to go out there and win, you shouldn’t be here. Because this is a privilege, it’s the greatest job in the world. You get to go out and play a game. And if you can’t care enough, even in Week 17, even when you’re trash, when you’re 4-11. If you can’t care enough to go out there and give everything you’ve got and try your hardest, that’s bullsh*t.
So that’s how… There are people every week that still tweet you, that still come up to you and say, ‘Hey, we’re still rooting for you; we’re still behind you.’ They have no reason whatsoever to. We stink. But they care, and they still want to win, and they still want you to be great. That’s why. Those people aren’t getting paid. We’re getting paid handsomely. That’s why. And that’s … that’s who I feel the most bad for, is our fans and the people who care so deeply. And the city and the people who love it and who truly want it to be great. And it’s not. And that sucks as a player to know that we’re not giving them what they deserve.”
That’s one of the main reasons why Watt has always been one of the most respected and beloved veterans in the league and that’s exactly the kind of mindset every single professional athlete should have when they take the field.
The Texans have no choice but to plan ahead to next season. They have one of the best quarterbacks in the league but must address several other aspects of the game if they want to stand a chance, starting withthe effort they put in the gridiron week in and week out.
