J.J. Watt was supposed to be at Reliant Stadium by 9:30 a.m. on Monday, the first day of the Texans' voluntary offseason workout program.
He arrived at 8.
Watt wasn't the only player to arrive early. Quarterback Matt Schaub was in the building by about 6:15 a.m. And Watt said on Twitter that "everybody was in early, not just me." But his early arrival is a clear indication that the 2012 NFL Defensive Player of the Year is not resting on his laurels as he approaches his third NFL season.
"I'm gonna be bigger, faster and stronger next year; I can promise you that," Watt said in the Texans' locker room after finishing his Monday morning workout. "You can expect bigger results as well."
Watt's results in 2012 were already huge. He led the NFL with 20.5 sacks, the sixth-highest total in league history. He set an NFL record for defensive linemen with 16 passes defensed. He was the first player in history with at least 14 sacks and 14 passes defensed in a season and the second-youngest (23) ever to win Defensive Player of the Year honors.
Watt had been working out on his own since a month after the 2012 season, doing two-a-day workouts three times a week. He said Monday that he weighs between 285 and 290 pounds, "pretty much exactly" what he weighed at the end of last season.
"I feel great, man," he said. "My offseason's been great. I've been doing a lot of great stuff, but my training's been at the core of it all. I'm really excited about what I've been doing and I'm really excited about getting here and putting it all together with these guys. "I think we still have like four months or so until the season, so (that's) even more time to get bigger, faster and stronger."
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