J.J. Watt and the Houston Texans mutually agreed to part ways Friday, the NFL star announced, leaving the future for the five-time All Pro defensive end in jeopardy.
Watt, a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, said in a video posted to social media Friday he wants to continue his career.
Here’s a look at where the 10-year veteran may play next, according to oddsmakers.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The allure of Pittsburgh toward Watt is obvious. His brothers — linebacker T.J. Watt and fullback Derek Watt — both play for the franchise.
Watt, who has shown himself to be a true family man, posted on social media last weekend he was unhappy T.J. did not win the Defensive Player of the Year award last season over Los Angeles Rams star Aaron Donald.
The Steelers are the favorite to land the elder Watt brother, according to BetOnline.ag, with +150 odds. Sportsline.com’s oddsmakers view the Steelers with the second-best odds at +200. He also has +200 odds at Spotsline.com, but their oddsmakers say another team is the favorite to land Watt.
Green Bay Packers
Signing with the Packers would mean a homecoming for Watt, who grew up in Wisconsin before later attending the University of Wisconsin.
However, the Packers would need to shed plenty of salary cap space in order to sign Watt, PackersWise notes.
The Packers are the betting favorites according to SportsLine to sign Watt at +150 odds. BetOnline gives the Packers +600 odds — tied for third best in the league.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
After 10 years in Houston, Watt will likely want to play for a team that will contend for the Super Bowl in 2021. Enter the Buccaneers, fresh off a Super Bowl victory.
After signing Tom Brady last offseason, the Buccaneers added veterans Rob Gronkowski and Antonio Brown to help them win the Super Bowl. Signing Watt would give them another veteran presence in the locker room and another skilled defender to add to their already stout defense.
The Buccaneers have +200 odds to sign Watt, according to BetOnline, while Sportsline gives Tampa Bay +400 odds to sign Watt.
Who else?
The Baltimore Ravens (+600), Dallas Cowboys (+900) and New England Patriots (+900) are the next most-likely teams to sign Watt, according to BetOnline. That varies from SportsLine, which leans toward the Cleveland Browns (+500), Tennessee Titans (+700) and San Francisco 49ers (+800).
Whichever team lands the future Hall of Famer will get a player fresh off a season where he played all 16 games, totaling 52 tackles, including 14 tackles for loss, and five sacks.
Impact on the Texans
Because quarterback Deshaun Watson has made it clear he wants out of Houston, odds of the Texans winning the Super Bowl next season were already slim, according to Action Network. But losing Watt won’t exactly help things.
The Texans’ odds through Draft Kings to win the 2021 Super Bowl are now the worst in the NFL at 125-1, Action Network reported.