The Houston Texans have placed star defensive lineman J.J. Watt on the injured reserve list, per Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk. As a corresponding move, the Texans signed defensive back Briean Boddy-Calhoun.

Watt underwent surgery on Tuesday to repair a torn pectoral muscle, an injury he suffered during Houston's win over the Oakland Raiders last Sunday.

Obviously, this is a devastating blow for a Texans team that has been fighting tooth-and-nail with the Indianapolis Colts for first place in the AFC South, and even the Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans are not yet out of the competitive divisional race.

Through eight games this season, Watt logged 24 tackles, four sacks, a forced fumble and a couple of fumble recoveries.

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The 30-year-old, who played his collegiate football at the University of Wisconsin, was originally selected by the Texans with the 11th overall pick of the 2011 NFL Draft.

He had a modest rookie campaign, totaling 56 tackles, 5.5 sacks and a pair of fumble recoveries, but the following year, Watt broke out, racking up 81 tackles, 20.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and 16 passes defended, making a Pro Bowl appearance and earning a First-Team All-Pro selection.

Watt proceeded to earn four straight trips to the Pro Bowl as well as notching First-Team All-Pro honors all four times between 2012 and 2015, leading the league in sacks twice.

However, since 2016, Watt has been ravaged by injuries, as he played in just eight games between 2016 and 2017 combined. He played a full 16-game campaign last year, registering 61 tackles, 16 sacks and seven forced fumbles, making the Pro Bowl and landing First-Team All-Pro honors yet again, but his season was cut short in 2019 for the third time in four years.