J.J. Watt and the Green Bay Packers would be a perfect fit

The Green Bay Packers should absolutely, 100 percent look into bringing J.J. Watt to Green Bay this offseason.

Now, before you tell me how unlikely or impossible it is, I know it’s not going to be easy. Fairytale endings like this don’t happen often. It takes two to tango. The Packers would have to be interested in Watt, which I assume they would be at the right price, and Watt would obviously have to be willing to come to Green Bay.

There are a lot of obstacles that need to be hurdled before Watt would return to Wisconsin to play for his home-state team.

Is J.J. Watt done in Houston?

The Houston Texans are an absolute dumpster fire right now. They have made some poor trades under Bill O’Brien these past couple of years that have left them with little to no draft capital. They are also about $16.5 million over the cap right now. This is a big problem because next year’s cap is not expected to go up, if at all.

On top of that, they went just 4-12 last season. Their star quarterback has requested a trade and they just hired a new head coach that no one really had at the top of their lists of candidates.

So all-in-all, things aren’t great in Houston, and Watson isn’t the only one who wants some clarity. According to NFL Network’s James Palmers, Watt’s time in Houston may have come to an end.

Watt is still under contract with the Texans. According to Spotrac, he has one year left on his contract and is scheduled to make $17.5 million in 2021. However, the money in his contract is not guaranteed, which means the Texans could cut Watt and be free of the $17.5 million without a cap hit.

Houston is going to be rebuilding no matter what. It might make sense to cut Watt so they can save the money and he could pursue a chance to win a title elsewhere.

Could Green Bay afford to bring in J.J. Watt?

It’s no secret that the Packers are in a bit of a bind when it comes to their cap space this offseason. I know people out there will tell you the cap is fake, which in a sense is true, but only to a certain extent. You can always move money around by pushing salary into the future, converting it to signing bonuses etc.

It’s easier to work that magic when the cap is growing on a yearly basis, which is usually the case. This year, that is not the case. The cap could be reduced, and the Packers have a lot of big-time players they need to pay.

There are some moves a lot of people think the Packers will need to do in order to save some cap. Cutting players like Preston Smith, Christian Kirksey, Devin Funchess, and Rick Wagner would save the Packers some money, but it won’t quite get there. They would need to restructure some contracts like Aaron Rodgers’ and push some money to the future when the cap would be higher.

If the Packers could find a way to free up more cap space, I would assume there would be some cap casualties, like Dean Lowry. It wouldn’t be much, but cutting Lowry would save the Packers $3.3 million.

Keep in mind, the Packers would likely be losing Aaron Jones, Corey Linsley, Jamaal Williams, and Kevin King. The Packers may opt to try to sign one or more of those guys instead of chasing players in free agency. But in this situation, we are going to assume they are gone and the Packers are looking to upgrade where they can at a cheaper price.

Depending on how badly Watt would want to play for Green Bay, he may sign for cheap. He’s made over $100 million in career earnings. I don’t think money is something he is going to put first. I think at this point in his illustrious career, winning a ring would be goal number one.

By coming to Green Bay on a cheap one or two-year deal, Watt would be able to contend for a Super Bowl. He’d be back in his home state and closer to his family as well. His wife, Kealia Ohai Watt, currently plays professional soccer for the Chicago Red Stars. Being in Green Bay would be a lot closer to Chicago than Houston would be.

J.J. Watt joining the Packers would be perfect in so many ways. Unfortunately, it could be tough to get there. Russ Ball and Brian Gutekunst will need to work some serious magic if this ever has a chance to be pulled off.