Watt and the Dolphins: What Are the Odds?
While the Deshaun Watson impasse continues in Houston, the face of the franchise was granted his wish and was released Friday morning.
Immediately, the speculation began as to where J.J. Watt, the three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year and five-time All-Pro selection, would continue his Hall of Fame career.
Three teams automatically came to the forefront, and they were the Pittsburgh Steelers, Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Steelers connection is obvious because joining that team would reunite Watt with his brothers T.J. and Derek; Green Bay would bring him back to Wisconsin, where he starred in college; and Tampa Bay will become an almost automatic potential location because of the power of Tom Brady.
But there are possibilities beyond those three, oddsmakers believe, and the Miami Dolphins happen to be one of them.
In fact, they were tied for seventh as the most likely next destination, according to BetOnline (betonline.ag), with odds listed at 14/1 (Cleveland also was 14/1).
The Dolphins are tied for 12th with Minnesota and New England, according to odds from SportsBetting.com, which put them at 15/1.
The five favorites according to SportsBetting.com are the Packers (3/2), Steelers (2/1), Cowboys (4/1), Rams (5/1) and Raiders (8/1).
BetOnline has Pittsburgh as the favorite at 3/2, followed by Tampa Bay (2/1), Baltimore (6/1), Green Bay (6/1) and Dallas (9/1).
Watt was due to make $17.5 million in 2021, and that's an awfully steep price for a pass rusher who will turn 32 in March and had five sacks in 16 games last season while playing 91 percent of his team's defensive snaps.
That said, there's no question that Watt could make an impact for any defense, and that most definitely includes the Dolphins.
Beyond what he could contribute on the field — he had seven passes defensed and an interception last year along with the five sacks — Watt is the kind of tone setter who could impact a young defense.
The big issue with Watt — along with financial considerations — is staying healthy, of course, because he didn't play more than half the season in 2016, 2017 and 2019.
For Watt, the appeal of playing for the Dolphins would be the same as most free agents: joining a young team on the rise in the warm weather in a city with no state income tax.
In the final analysis, it doesn't seem likely that Watt will end up with the Dolphins. But it certainly could be an impactful addition — at the right price.
