Houston Texans DE J.J. Watt Named AFC Defensive Player of the Month

Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt has been named the AFC Defensive Player of the Month.

Watt led the league with 7.5 sacks en route to helping the Texans to a 4-0 record in September. He leads Houston’s top ranked defense in tackles for loss (10) and fumble recoveries (2), is tied for the team lead in passes defensed (5) and ranks second on the team in tackles (20).

The Texans defense has held opponents to league-lows of 273.0 yards per game and 14.0 points per game.

He became the first Texans player to record more than one sack in four consecutive games, and is already more than halfway to the Texans' single-season sack record of 14.0 set by Mario Williams in 2008.

In Week 1, Watt had 1.5 sacks and three passes defensed in the Texans’ 30-10 victory over the Miami Dolphins. Two of his tipped passes were intercepted by teammates, leading to touchdowns.

His outstanding effort continued in Week 2 with 1.5 sacks, two passes defensed, two tackles for loss, a team-high five tackles and a fumble recovery in a 27-7 victory at the Jacksonville Jaguars.

In Week 3, Watt sacked Denver Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning 2.5 times. He had four tackles for loss and seven total tackles. He was named AFC Defensive Player of the Week.

And Watt didn’t disappoint in Week 4 with two sacks, three tackles for loss and a fumble recovery against the Tennessee Titans.

The second year pro leads all AFC defensive linemen with nine passes defenses since he entered the league.

Watt is the third defensive player in Texans history to win AFC Player of the Month honors.

List of Texans AFC Player of the Month Award Winners:

J.J. Watt (Defensive), September 2012
Connor Barwin (Defensive), November 2011
Arian Foster (Offensive), October 2011
Arian Foster (Offensive), September 2011
Andre Johnson (Offensive), October 2008
Marcus Coleman (Defensive), September 2003
Chad Stanley (Special Teams), September 2002