Count the Green Bay Packers among the teams interested in acquiring defensive lineman J.J. Watt, who was released by the Houston Texans on Friday.
According to Bill Huber of Sports Illustrated, the Packers are one of around a dozen teams already interested in Watt.
The fit looks nearly perfect for both sides. The Packers could certainly use a versatile, disruptive defensive lineman like Watt to fortify the defensive front and create a championship-level pass-rush. Watt, a Wisconsin native, would get a chance to chase a Super Bowl with Aaron Rodgers and the Packers, who have won 26 regular-season games since 2019 and advanced to the NFC title game each of the last two seasons.
It’s possible Watt could be the final piece of the Super Bowl puzzle for the Packers. And it’s almost certain that Watt has some level of interest in joining the Packers, the team he cheered for growing up.
The financial side is where the pairing gets tricky. Watt appears to be a highly-coveted player on the open market, as expected, and the Packers still need to shed over $20 million to get under the expected salary cap of 2021, even after restructuring David Bakhtiari’s deal to clear space.
GM Brian Gutekunst has plenty of ways to shed more cap space and clear enough space for Watt, but several more moves would be required.
The pros of adding Watt look to outweigh the risks, although it must be considered that the former Badgers star will be 32 years old next month and has missed big chunks of three seasons since 2016 with major injuries.