J.J. Watt Sends Shoes To American Troops, As Promised

HOUSTON, TX — It's not December and J.J. Watt certainly isn't Santa Claus, but he created a late Christmas for a platoon of American paratroopers currently stationed in Afghanistan. As promised last month, Watt sent the whole crew a new set of his Reebok shoe line that's hitting the market.

The story begins last month (December 2017) when Watt tweeted a photo that he's excited for his new shoe line to come out. A member of the platoon replied to Watt, asking if his shoes will be able to make it to the war zone in the Middle East. Watt said he would make it happen, and asked for them to send the shoe sizes of all the troops in that platoon.

Fast forward to Thursday when the member of the platoon sent a thank you tweet with a photo of the shoes.

Watt was overly impressed with the photo and the sentiment, so he replied back and thanked the troops for their service and wished them safety in their endeavors.

Now that is a badass photo!
I’m glad they made it to you guys. Send my best to the rest of the crew, stay safe and know that all of us over here are thinking about you and thankful for you. https://t.co/mPYhrEihtk

Watt is a finalist for the NFL's Walter Payton Man of the Year Award to be presented next Saturday (Feb. 3) in Minneapolis the night before the Super Bowl.

Watt, one of the most feared defensive linemen in all of football, is no stranger to helping people in need off the field. Most recently, Watt spearheaded a charge to raise money for Hurricane Harvey relief. What began as a goal of $200,000 turned into a fundraising effort of more than $37 million. For his efforts, Watt was named Sports Illustrated's Sportsperson of the Year along with Astros second baseman Jose Altuve.

Top image: NFL player J.J. Watt attends the Launch of J.J. Watt's New Signature Sneaker, The Reebok JJ I at ArtBeam on June 23, 2016 in New York City. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for Reebok)