JJ Watt lauds Paul Bissonnette for ‘defending the people’ in restaurant brawl

Another beloved Phoenix sports figure lauded Paul Bissonnette for coming to the aid of the staff at a Scottsdale restaurant on Sunday night. 

Bissonnette, 39, was assaulted by six men after he stepped in to defend the manager and restaurant staff at Houston’s when the group started causing issues. 

Bissonnette, during a retelling of the events, said the melee started in the restaurant and ended out in the parking lot. 

Reacting to Bissonnette’s video about what occurred on X, former Cardinals and Texans defensive end J.J. Watt applauded the actions. 

“The French Dip alone is worth fighting for,” Watt wrote. “Good on you for defending the people Biz. 7 goons and barely a scratch. Legend.”

The incident started when Bissonnette said he stepped in after one in the group of “drunk golfers” got into the manager’s face. 

“You could tell he was a little shocked and surprised and stunned,” Bissonnette said in a video posted on social media. “It’s a family restaurant. I don’t think there was anybody in there who could go maybe like help him out. I went over, I just grabbed the guy’s arm that was on him, I said ‘Sir, if you continue to harass and assault the staff, we’re going to have problems.’ 

“And then they just started chucking, so it escalated extremely quickly.”

Scottsdale police identified the alleged assailants as Henry Mesker, John Carroll, William Carroll, Danny Bradley, Edward Jennings and Sean Daley, who was found with a fraudulent military ID when he was arrested for his role in the assault. 

The men were taken to jail on assault charges and some for disorderly conduct. 

Daley is facing a felony charge, while the rest are facing misdemeanors. 

Bissonnette played for the Coyotes during the course of his NHL career. 

Watt played the majority of his career with the Texans but spent his last two NFL seasons with the Cardinals.