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azcentral Cardinals insiders Bob McManaman and Katherine Fitzgerald break down the J.J. Watt signing and how that helps the Cards and what it means moving forward.

Arizona Republic

One signing can evidently have a huge impact on a team’s Super Bowl odds.

Just look at how the Arizona Cardinals’ odds to win the Super Bowl have climbed after the team signed defensive end J.J. Watt.

Draft Kings released updated Super Bowl odds after Arizona signed the former Houston Texans standout and the Cardinals went from +5000 to +3300 with his signing.

Or from 50/1 to 33/1.

That’s not the only odds Watt’s signing impacted.

The Cardinals were +2200 to win the NFC and +700 to win the NFC West before adding Watt.

They are now +1500 to win the NFC and +500 to win the NFC West.

More: J.J. Watt signing an ‘endorsement’ of Arizona Cardinals’ Kyler Murray

Last month, Draft Kings interestingly had the Arizona Cardinals at +1600 to sign Watt, 14th in its odds.

Some NFL insiders and writers have raved about Arizona’s move to sign Watt since the announcement was made on Monday.

The Big Lead’s Kyle Koster wrote about how J.J. Watt can win a Super Bowl with the Arizona Cardinals.

Seriously.

“The knee-jerk reaction has tended to question — either implicitly or explicitly — Watt’s motivations and if a financial windfall may be more of a factor than competing for a championship,” Koster wrote. “And while the Cardinals are not exactly nearing the summit of the NFL’s highest peak, it’s not as though they’re at the base of the mountain without proper climbing equipment. Arizona was not a playoff team in 2020 but weren’t far off, finishing 8-8. Kyler Murray, in his second year, took some demonstrable strides in his development, improving his QBR by more than 11 points and rushing for 819 yards while finding the end zone with more efficiency in his sophomore campaign. DeAndre Hopkins, arguably the best wide receiver on the planet, is returning and will be hungry to succeed with his former Texans teammate by his side once again. Christian Kirk is poised for further breakout, and Larry Fitzgerald is Larry Fitzgerald. Watt will join forces with Chandler Jones and be tasked with getting to the quarterback knowing full well there’s a bevy of playmakers in the secondary to capitalize. With the No. 16 pick in the draft, the opportunity for an immediate contributor exists.”

More: J.J. Watt arrives in Arizona with promise for Cardinals fans after signing with NFL team

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar is also big fan of the J.J. Watt signing for the Cardinals.

He wrote about how Chandler Jones’ presence will really help Watt in Arizona and how Watt could push the Cardinals over the top.

“Injuries have complicated Watt’s overall legacy over the last few seasons, and he has amassed just nine sacks in the last two seasons, but as is the case with sack totals in any instance, that doesn’t tell the whole story,” Farrar wrote. “In 2020, Watt also had 11 quarterback hits, 29 quarterback hurries, and 34 stops on a defensive line that wasn’t exactly packed with other stars. Last season, the Texans had 33 solo sacks (middle of the pack) and 211 total pressures (sixth-worst in the league), which means that Watt had 21.3% of the team’s total pressures. That will no longer be a problem for Watt; the presence of edge-rusher Chandler Jones alone will give Watt more opportunities to find single teams among blockers and more pressure opportunities. As it turns out, this is kind of a big deal.”

How big of an impact can Watt have in Arizona?

More: J.J. Watt signing winners, losers: Cardinals, Texans, Russell Wilson, Chandler Jones, more