J.J. Watt recently jumped on a 61-inch box.
61 inches is equal to or taller than famous folks like Lady Gaga, Christina Aguilera and the twins Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen.
The 65-inch Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros could be next.
"I'm always going to try and push myself to the absolute limits," Watt said. "That box jump is just kind
of another of those examples of pushing myself."
Watt and the Texans were back to work on Monday at NRG Stadium and the Houston Methodist Training Center for voluntary offseason conditioning work. He and a handful of his teammates met with the media following the morning work, and the questions about his leaping feats were numerous.
For the record though, Watt dismissed the idea of jumping over the All-Star second baseman.
"How tall is Jose?," Watt said. "He's 5-5? I don't think I'm getting there."
The reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, and the only player in League history with two seasons of 20 sacks or more, Watt's spent the past three months and change preparing for the 2015
campaign. And those workouts have gone better than expected.
The 61-inch leap topped last year's personal record of 59.5 inches.
"I normally hit my highs in July, at the end of the second part of the offseason," Watt said. "So to hit this early in the offseason is exciting for me. It's really been a great offseason so far. A lot of my lifts, a lot of my running, a lot of it is really where I'd normally be at the end of July. It's exciting for me to be so far ahead this early."
Watt also explained that the box jump is an exercise that emphasizes explosion, agility and leg strength.
"There are so many different aspects to it," Watt said. "That's why I like it as a training method. But who knows how high it's going to go? It's a lot of fun trying, that's for sure."
The Texans will continue their workouts on Tuesday.
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Defensive end J.J. Watt's 2014 was one to remember. Game-by-game, a Texans' opponent shared his thoughts on the Defensive Player of the Year.
1 sack, 5 QB hits, 2 TFL, 1 FR, 1 blocked extra point "Of course J.J. Watt is going to make some plays. He's going to do that."- Washington OT Trent Williams
1 QB hit that caused an INT, 1 TD reception on offense "We knew we wanted to try to make sure we knew where he was on every play."- Oakland head coach Dennis Allen
7 tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFL and 1 batted pass"Every time I got an interview last week it was, 'What's J.J. Watt going to do?' I was overthinking it the first play I went out there, so obviously I wish I could get that back."-New York OT Jordan Pugh
9 QB hits, 1 INT returned 80 yards for a TD"When you see something like that happen, you just have to sit back and tip your hat to a guy like that. They didn't pay him all that money for no reason."- Buffalo RB Fred Jackson
4 tackles"He's the best player in the NFL. I believe that."-Dallas Owner Jerry Jones
2 sacks, 3 TFL, 1 FR for a TD. "He'll go down as one of the best defensive players probably when it is all said and done to play the game."- Colts HC Chuck Pagano:
1 sack, 1 FR, 2 QB hits "He's a good player. You all know that. It's a dog fight in there."- Pittsburgh C Maurkice Pouncey
2 sacks, 1 FF, 1 batted pass "You got 99 over there, you got to get the ball in your hand quick." -Tennessee QB Zac Mettenberger
1.5 sacks, 7 tackles, 5 QB hits "Watt and Mercilus and those guys we talked about earlier in the week, they're the real deal."
1 sack, 3 TFL, 1 FF, 1 FR, 1 TD catch on offense "He's a great player and he's the type of player that makes the players around him better, too."- Cleveland QB Brian Hoyer
7 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 QB hit "He's a great player. He makes you honest every play, every snap in the first, second, third and fourth quarter."-Cincinnati offensive tackle Marshall Newhouse
2 sacks, 6 QB hits, 1 FF, 1 FR, 1 TD catch on offense "He's putting a good case for himself to be MVP this year."- Tennessee QB Zac Mettenberger
3 sacks, 4 TFL, 5 QB hits "Great football player and is one of those guys that have the ability to just to make plays, create turnovers, create havoc."- Jacksonville OT Luke Joeckel
2 sacks, 6 tackles and 1 batted pass "He's a heck of a player. He's going to make plays, we knew that."- Indianapolis QB Andrew Luck
1 sack, 3 TFL, 8 total tackles, 4 QB hits"I respect the heck out of him. He's very savvy and smart."- Baltimore receiver Steve Smith, Sr.
3 sacks (1 for a safety), 4 TFL, 1 FF "He's got what, 20 sacks? He is a very, very dominant player and he is going to get some opportunities."- Jacksonville head coach Gus Bradley
