By now, many Bengals fans surely know the backstory here. Watt, partial owner of Burnley F.C., made a bet with goalkeeper James Trafford back in December that he would come out of retirement to join the Bengals if Trafford doesn’t surrender a goal for the remainder of the season.

J.J. Watt, a part owner of Burnley F.C., might have to come out retirement if James Trafford, the club's goalkeeper, keeps playing out of his mind. In January, Watt posted messages between him and Trafford where the English footballer asked Watt to come out of retirement to play for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Current Burnley minority stake owner J.J. Watt said that he'd play for James Trafford's Bengals if the goalkeeper didn't give up another goal.

Future Hall of Fame defensive end J.J. Watt's bet with a soccer goalie has him jokingly close to unretiring and playing for the Cincinnati Bengals.

Copyright © 2025 Bleacher Report, Inc. A Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All Rights Reserved.

English Championship club Burnley made history by keeping a 10th successive clean sheet on Wednesday -- a record that edges part owner J.J. Watt towards a shock NFL return with the Cincinnati Bengals.

ESPN’s Aaron Schatz outlined “bold” predictions for the offseason and said the Bengals need to trade Hendrickson away:

Burnley FC's tweet showed goalkeeper James Trafford holding up a No. 99 Bengals jersey and JJ Watt signing a sheet of paper.

When J.J. Watt agreed to his ... months of clean sheets, then Watt would have to come out of retirement and play for Trafford's favorite NFL team, the Cincinnati Bengals. Watt — who's part ...

J.J. Watt, a part owner of Burnley F.C., might have to come out retirement if James Trafford, the club's goalkeeper, keeps playing out of his mind. In January, Watt posted messages between him and ...

The dream of Cincinnati Bengals fans of pairing J.J. Watt with 2024 NFL sacks leader Trey Hendrickson at defensive end might not come to fruition. But a tweet Thursday from Burnley FC that ...

English Championship club Burnley made history by keeping a 10th successive clean sheet on Wednesday -- a record that means part owner J.J. Watt ... return with the Cincinnati Bengals.