FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Sunday, December 13th, 2015
J.J. WATT SPEAKS WITH BOB COSTAS ON NBC’S “FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA”
“There was a time this season where everyone wrote us out… but inside that locker room, we didn’t listen.” – Watt on Texans’ resurgence following their 2-5 start
STAMFORD, Conn. – December 13, 2015 – For tonight’s Week 14 edition of NBC’s Football Night In America, the most-watched weekly studio show in sports, Texans DE J.J. Watt speaks with Bob Costas. Football Night will also preview NBC’s Sunday Night Football matchup between the Patriots and Texans, and will include highlights, analysis and reaction to earlier Week 14 games.
Football Night airs each Sunday at 7 p.m. ET on NBC, with Costas hosting the program live from inside the stadium. He will be joined on site by Sunday Night Football analyst Cris Collinsworth, sideline reporter Michele Tafoya, and NBC NFL analyst Hines Ward.
Dan Patrick co-hosts Football Night from NBC Sports Group’s Studio 1 in Stamford, Conn., and is joined by Super Bowl-winning head coach Tony Dungy; two-time Super Bowl winner Rodney Harrison; Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk on NBCSports.com and NBCSN, and NFL insider Peter King. Kathryn Tappen will report from Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis., on the Cowboys-Packers game.
INTERVIEW: Below are excerpts from Costas’ interview with Watt. If used, please note the mandatory credit: “In an exclusive interview airing Sunday night on Football Night in America.”
J.J. WATT WITH BOB COSTAS
On the Texans’ resurgence following the team’s 2-5 start: “There was a time this season when everyone wrote us out. Basically, everybody was planning our funeral and saying ‘The Texans are done. Everybody needs to go.’ We were playing terrible football. But inside that locker room, we didn’t listen. We believed in ourselves and put ourselves into a position to be in contention.”
On his broken left hand: “I don’t think it’s going to affect me as much as it may come off. It’s going to be completely closed, so it will be in a full club. I know ways to not have to use the left hand as much, and I also know that I can use it. It’s just a pain tolerance thing. It’s at that point where I’m really not going to mess it up any more, it’s just how much pain you’re willing to play with. The only thing I won’t be able to do is grab. I won’t be able to grab, and pull, and shed necessarily, but I’ll be able to make up for it. All week, since it happened, I’ve been thinking of things in my mind that I can do to make up for it.”
On Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s comparison of Watt to former Giants LB Lawrence Taylor: “Coming from a guy like Bill Belichick, who is a Hall of Fame coach, possibly the best coach of all-time, he’s seen so many great players play. For him to give praise like that, like he doesn’t do very often, it means a lot. After he gave that, somebody showed me the stats comparison between Lawrence and I. I had never seen it before, and that kind of blew me away. I had never seen it, and I didn’t expect it to look the way it did.”
On leaving an impact on the game of football: “That’s my goal. It’s one of those things that you’re passionate about. It’s a life dream and it’s a culmination. Everything you’ve ever wanted, everything you’ve ever worked for is to leave a legacy.”
–FOOTBALL NIGHT IN AMERICA–
