| Net Worth: | $70 million |
|---|---|
| Age/Date of Birth: | 35 years old (22 March 1989) |
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Ethnicity/Race: | White |
| Nationality: | American |
| Wife or Girlfriend: | Kealia Watt (m. 2020) |
| Parents: | Father – John Watt Mother – Connie Watt |
J. J. Watt is among the best defenders making waves in the National Football League (NFL). He started his professional career with the Houston Texans in 2011 and in just a couple of years, the defensive end is now a 5-time Pro Bowler, 2-time NFL sacks leader, and 3-time NFL best defender of the year award winner.
In addition to that, Watt has earned a spot in the All-Pro first-team five times, while receiving other accolades for his excellent achievements. Since the inception of his professional career, he has been blazing for the Houston Texans and has come to accumulate a massive fortune estimated at $50 Million.
Exploring How J. J. Watt Built His Net Worth to $50 Million
J. J Watt has been outstanding since the inception of his career and has made huge wealth for himself. His net worth is currently pegged at $50 million and it is believed that his NFL salaries have contributed most to his wealth.
The Defensive End Has Made Over $100 Million from His NFL Salaries
Before the 2014 NFL season kicked off, J. J Watt inked a six-year contract extension with the Texans. The deal which saw him become the highest-paid non-quarterback player in the league based on yearly salary was worth $100 million. When he made the pact, it was disclosed that he received $30.9 million and would get another $21 million at the beginning of the 2016 season.
The first contract of his professional career was a four-year deal worth $11.24 million. Watt earned a massive $15.5 million in 2020 and based on his current contract, is expected to earn $17.5 million in 2021, even though the cash involved is not guaranteed.
A Look at His Yearly Earnings from On-field Pay
Watt has been a part of the NFL for over ten years and as you would soon learn, he has never earned less than a million for his on-field efforts apart from 2012, his second season in the league.
- 2011 – $7,047,728
- 2012 – $885,795
- 2013 – $1,396,590
- 2014 – $10,907,385
- 2015 – $19,969,000
- 2016 – $10,500,000
- 2017 – $10,500,000
- 2018 – $11 Million
- 2019 – $13 Million
- 2020 – $15.5 Million
He Is the Defensive Player that Earns Most from Endorsements in NFL
While J. J. Watt isn’t a quarterback, he is one of the most marketable players in the league. In 2015, Forbes estimated that he pulls as much as $7 million from endorsement deals. According to the business magazine, that amount is on par with what elite quarterbacks make from endorsements. And, no other defensive player in the league makes more than $2 million from endorsements.
Look at the attainments of his career, it is easy to see why he has been able to gain the attention of popular brands. The skilled player has several endorsement deals that have added to his wealth. Some of the notable brands that Watt has partnered with include American Family Insurance, Gatorade, Reebok, H-E-B, NRG, Verizon, and Ford.
The NFL Star Is Quite an Investor
J. J. Watt has always been someone that looks for ways to make money. When he was schooling at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Watt worked for Pewaukee Pizza Hut, delivering Pizza to customers. Now that he has the means and exposure to increase his earning power, the footballer holds on to any opportunity that comes his way.
Details of his investment portfolio may not be known to the public but the defensive end has interests in companies like Reliant and Public.com. The latter is a social investing network company through which people can buy public stock with any amount. It was reported in March 2020 that Watt didn’t only invest in the company but helped them to raise $15 million.
Reliant is a subsidiary of NRG Energy. The company based in Texas is a retail electric provider. Sometime in July 2015, it circulated that Watt had become a Vice-President of Power Relations for the company.
Hosting Fox’s Ultimate Tag Is Another Source of Income for the Footballer
It was in May 2020 that the television series premiered on FOX with J. J and his brothers, T. J Watt and Derek Watt, as its host. Ultimate Tag is a sports entertainment, obstacle course competition game show. It revolves around taggers trying to catch contestants running through several indoor obstacle courses.
The show has already aired 10 episodes from its first season and judging by the millions of viewers it has pulled, would run for a while. What J. J. Watt gets for co-hosting this show is not known but the figure must be worth his time.
The Sources of Watt’s Wealth
- NFL salaries
- Endorsement deals
- Dividends from the companies he has invested in
- Paychecks from hosting Fox’s Ultimate Tag
How J. J. Watt’s Net Worth Grew Over the Years
When the defensive end was drafted to join the NFL in 2011, he made a four-year pact with the Houston Texans that immediately made him a multi-millionaire. The deal was worth $11.24 million and that very year, the footballer earned over $7 million.
But over time, Watt became a force to reckon with and this positioned him for better deals like his 2014 six-year contract extension worth $100 million. In addition to that, popular brands came calling to partner with him.
Ultimately, J. J. Watt’s earning power increased and this reflected on his net worth. Below is a look at the value of his wealth over time.
- 2011 – $5 Million
- 2014 – $10 Million
- 2016 – $25 Million
- 2018 – $40 Million
- 2020 – $50 Million
He Spends His Money on Charity, Real Estate, and Fancy Cars
As much as the NFL player is loved for his on-field skills, he is admired for his passion for humanity. J. J. Watt is very public-spirited and through his charity organization, the Justin J. Watt Foundation, he has donated millions to various charitable causes. Notably, he donated $100,000 towards rebuilding Houston after the devastation of Hurricane Harvey and eventually raised a total of $37 million for the project.
As far as spending his money goes, charity causes take the largest cake. Nonetheless, he has also parted with good sums to acquire properties and fine cars. The very year he joined the NFL, Watt purchased a home in Pearland, Texas for around $399,000. Latter in 2016, it was reported that he listed the residence asking for $465,000. The previous year (2015), he purchased another property in Waukesha County, Wisconsin for $800,000.
The defensive end has been seen with fine rides like Polaris 1000, Audi RS7, and Ford F-150 Platinum. But the most significant car he has bought was the one he purchased for his mother to mark her birthday, a Range Rover.
I've wanted to be able to do this my whole life. For all you've worked & sacrificed, you deserve it. Happy B-Day Mom! pic.twitter.com/oP1AWQwGwu
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) October 1, 2014
Tracing the Footballer’s Family Background
The talented football star came from an athletic family; his parents were active in sports during their high school days. Watt isn’t the only child of his parents, he has two younger brothers with whom he was raised. Just like Watt, his two brothers have equally established themselves as professional football stars.
His immediate younger brother Derek Watt currently plays the fullback position for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was drafted from the University of Wisconsin by the San Diego Chargers in 2016. His other brother T. J Watt is equally not left out in this regard. T. J is a professional outside linebacker currently associated with the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL. He was chosen by the Steelers in the first round of the 2017 draft.
How J. J Watt Became a Football Player
The defender whose birth name is Justin James Watt developed a keen interest in playing football while he was growing up and by the time he was in 5th grade, he was already on his way to building a career in the sport. At Pewaukee High School, Watt became quite popular as an outstanding defender for his school’s football team, he got both the Player of the Year and MVP Awards as a senior. It is said that he recorded a total of 26 receptions, 5 touchdowns, and 399 receiving yards as a senior. Thereafter, he attended Central Michigan University for his college education as well as to build his football career.
Watt played only one season for the Central Michigan football team. At the end of the season, he transferred to the University of Wisconsin where he spent two more years before joining the professional football league. At Wisconsin, he was redshirted in 2008, and the following year, he got the Player of the Year award after making 44 combined tackles and 4.5 sacks.
Finishing his college career in 2010, Watt recorded 62 combined tackles and defended nine passes while making an interception. At the end of the 2010 season, J. J was named his team’s MVP while getting All-American and All-Big Ten team honours. He was equally the recipient of the 2010 Ronnie Lott Trophy.
A Look At The Stats of His Professional Career
Joining the NFL draft of 2011, J. J Watt was picked by the Houston Texans as the eleventh overall player and first defensive end to be selected that year. Afterwards, he signed up with the Texans on a four-year deal worth $11.24 million. He went on to make his first appearance for the team in their season opener game against the Indianapolis Colts in September. Subsequently, he made fifteen more appearances for the team in the 2011 season. Watt helped the Texans qualify for the playoffs for the first time in history while making a total of 56 combined tackles that season.
The following season, Watt got his first Pro Bowl and All-Pro Team selection after leading the league in sacks. He proved himself worthy of this recognition after making 20.5 sacks and 81 combined tackles in the 2012 season. The star player further got four more Pro Bowl and All-Pro team selections in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2018. He led the league in sacks in 2015 and was crowned the league’s defender of the year for the third time. Watt also received the same award as well as the Bert Bell Award in 2014.
The Injuries He Overcame to Pull off His Career Stats
He underwent groin surgery in January 2016 for a sports-related hernia. Later in the same year, Watt underwent multiple back surgeries which made him miss out on taking part in games for the rest of the 2016 season. Rejoining his team for the 2017 season, the defender appeared in just five games before he incurred another injury which kept him away for the remaining games in the season. He completely recovered and was certified fit to join the Texans for the 2018 season. He went on to make 16 appearances for the team, recording 61 combined tackles at the end of the season.
The player’s 2019 season promised to be successful after his team won the Los Angeles Chargers and he recorded 2 sacks on Philip Rivers. However, Watt suffered an injury sometime in August 2019 and this was during the 8th week of the NFL season. His pectoral tendon tore and this made him unfit to play in any upcoming games that period.
For the next couple of months up until December, J. J Watt did not feature in any game and when he started showing signs of recovering, he started practising with his team. By the 31st of December 2019, he was cleared to play as he was fit again and Watt skillfully sacked Buffalo Bills’ Josh Allen in a 22 – 19 victory for his team.
As of the end of his 2019 NFL career season, Watt had totalled 479 tackles, 96 sacks, 54 pass deflections, 23 forced fumbles, 15 fumble recoveries, 2 defensive touchdowns, and 1 interception.
J.J Watt’s Wife Is Also a Professional Athlete
Kealia Ohai Watt
- Birth Name: Kealia Mae Ohai
- Date of Birth: January 31, 1992
- Occupation: Soccer Player
- Duration of Marriage: 2020 – Present
- No of Kids with Watt: Nil
The defensive player had been in a relationship with a lady named Kealia Ohai. Kealia is an American soccer player and a member of the US Women’s National Team. She played for the Houston Dash of the National Women’s Soccer League and as of this writing, plays for the Chicago Red Stars.
Kealia has represented the United States at several levels: senior national teams, under-23, under-20, and under-17. She was the hero of the 2012 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup final as she netted the lone goal of the game.
Watt’s wife had her college career with the Tar Heels of the University of North Carolina from 2010 to 2013, scoring 20 goals in 44 appearances. Her professional career began in 2014 after she was selected in the year’s NWSL College Draft as the second overall pick by the Houston Dash.
The Couple Met Through Kealia’s Sister
Megan Cushing is Kealia’s sister and the wife of Brian Cushing, a former teammate of Watt. As it happened, Brian and Watt spent a lot of time together when the former played for the Texans. He became a family friend and eventually met Kealia.
Although the pair are quite popular for their careers, they have managed to keep their love life private. Nonetheless, we can tell they began dating sometime in 2016 and waited for about a year before making it known publicly. Confirming in a podcast that she and J. J. were dating, Kealia related that she had known the defensive end for a long time.
Based on what she said, they became friends after they met and remained so for a while before they became lovers. While the two continued to make public appearances together and were seen cheering for each other in their games, they refused to make the relationship a public affair. People only kept up with them through what they shared on their social media pages until it emerged they were married.
From what we learned, it was a secret wedding held in the Bahamas on the 15th of February 2020. Watt and his wife are yet to have any kids. This would probably remain so for a while as having any child would bring Kealia’s career to an end.
| Profile Summary | |
|---|---|
| First Name: | Justin |
| Last Name: | Watt |
| Also Known As: | J.J |
| Sex/Gender: | Male |
| Profession: | Football defensive end |
| Famous For: | Houston Texans |
| Colleges/Universities Attended: | Central Michigan University; University of Wisconsin-Madison |
| Educational Qualifications: | N/A |
| Religion: | Non-religious |
| Birthday & Zodiac |
|
| Age/Date of Birth: | 35 years old (22 March 1989) |
| Zodiac Sign: | Aries |
| Birth Place: | Waukesha, Wisconsin, United States |
| Nationality: | American |
| Ethnicity/Race: | White |
| Country of Residence: | United States of America (USA) |
| Physical Attributes |
|
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
| Weight: | 288 lb (131 kg) |
| Eye Colour: | Blue |
| Hair Color: | Light Brown |
| Other Body Measurements: | N/A |
| Relationships | |
| Marital Status: | Married |
| Spouse/Partner: | Kealia Watt (m. 2020) |
| Family and Relatives |
|
| Father: | John Watt |
| Mother: | Connie Watt |
| Children: | N/A |
| Siblings: | Derek Watt (Brother) T. J. Watt (Brother) |
| Other Relatives: | N/A |
| Net Worth | |
| Estimated Net Worth: | $50 million |
| Salary: | $15.5 million |
| Source of Wealth: | Football Career |
