Watt 'looking forward to the fight back to the top' after injury setback

Another injury to his surgically repaired back will force J.J. Watt to the sidelines for the first time in his NFL career.

The Houston Texans' star defensive end released a statement Wednesday addressing the unfortunate news on his official Twitter account, maintaining perspective and looking ahead to his recovery with some relative optimism.

"I haven't missed a game since my sophomore year of high school," Watt said. "This won't be fun, but it is necessary in order for me to return to 100 percent and play at the level that I am capable of playing at. Everybody deals with adversity in their lives, many much worse than what I'm going through.

"I have great people around me and I appreciate the thoughts and well wishes from all of you. I am looking forward to the fight back to the top and to the next time that I can step back on that field with my brothers to play the game that I love. You are the best fans in the world and I promise to continue to do everything in my power to make you proud."

Watt made a quick recovery from the July procedure on a herniated disc to be on the field in time for Week 1. Despite tallying 1.5 sacks over the first three games, the three-time Defensive Player of the Year clearly wasn't at full strength.

The Texans placing him on injured reserve Wednesday means that he'll be eligible to return for a Week 12 matchup with the San Diego Chargers, though there's some uncertainty as to whether he'll be cleared to play at all this season.