Report: Buffalo Bills interested in defensive end J.J. Watt

The Buffalo Bills need to improve their pass rush, so it should come as no surprise that the team has reportedly shown interest in newly available defensive end J.J. Watt, who was released by the Houston Texans on Friday. ESPN’s Ed Werder reported the Bills to be among the interested parties via Twitter.

Watt, 31, has spent his entire professional career with the Houston Texans, amassing 101 sacks, 61 pass breakups, 25 forced fumbles, 172 tackles for loss, and 282 quarterback hits in that time. In 2020, he played a full 16-game season for just the second time in the last five years. He notched five sacks, 14 tackles for loss, 17 quarterback hits, and seven pass breakups, adding an interception, a defensive touchdown, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and 52 tackles on the year.

In 2019, Watt missed Houston’s final eight regular season games thanks to a torn pectoral muscle. He returned in time to torment the Bills in the Wild Card Playoffs, as he sacked quarterback Josh Allen once, hit him twice, and had a tackle-for-loss in his 52 defensive snaps during Houston’s 22-19 come-from-behind overtime victory.

There is a small Watt connection in the Buffalo front office, as Bills senior personnel advisor Brian Gaine worked in the Texans’ front office on two separate occasions. He first served as Houston’s Director of Pro Personnel from 2014-2016, then as the team’s general manager from January 2018-June 2019.