Latest news with #TJWatt
NBC Sports
7 hours ago
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Jefferson, Watt among 'most unlosable' NFL players
The Dan Patrick Show crew discuss which teams can't afford to lose certain players to an injury this year, highlighting Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Justin Jefferson and Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker TJ Watt.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
EA Sports snubs Steelers EDGE T.J. Watt on Madden 26 99 Club
On Monday, EAP Sports dropped its list of players in the 99 Club for the upcoming Madden 26 video game. These are the rare group of players who earn a 99 player rating, which is the best you can get. Only seven players made the cut this year and one who just missed was Pittsburgh Steelers edge defender T.J. Watt. Watt had a 97 rating in Madden 25, up from a 94 in Madden 24. Watt struggled down the stretch last season but was still one of the best defensive players in the NFL. Meanwhile, Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett was on the list and was the only defensive player who earned a 99 player rating. This is a big sting for Steelers fans as the rivalry between Garrett and Watt among the fanbase is heated. EA Sports is giving early access to Madden 26 for seven days on August 7 if you pre-order the game. The official release date is August 14. This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: EA Sports snubs Steelers EDGE T.J. Watt on Madden 26 99 Club
New York Times
6 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
T.J. Watt is trusting Steelers GM Omar Khan to end his postseason drought
LATROBE, Pa. — Six months before T.J. Watt lugged his bags into Rooney Hall for another training camp at Saint Vincent College, the Pittsburgh Steelers' star edge rusher delivered a message more powerful than his signature punchout. Typically, Watt treats media sessions like an obligation. He talks because he has to, not because he wants to. But ahead of the Steelers' playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens, there was something he had to say. Advertisement 'There's a big difference between (former Steelers) that come back that are Super Bowl champions and guys that aren't,' Watt said. 'And that's not a slight at the guys that aren't. I'm one of those guys right now.' It was a heck of a statement from a team captain. Watt — who hasn't won a playoff game, much less a Super Bowl, in eight NFL seasons — showed a level of self-awareness in that moment, as he vocalized the urgency inside the locker room and the frustrations of a city that hasn't seen a Steelers playoff win since January 2017. Just days after that impassioned monologue came yet another playoff embarrassment. Watt and the Steelers' highly compensated defense allowed nearly 300 rushing yards in a 28-14 loss to the Ravens. It completed a five-game collapse to end the season. Entering the offseason, the Steelers and Watt reached a crossroads with the star edge rusher set to enter the final year of his contract. Pittsburgh had already once made Watt the NFL's highest-paid non-quarterback, following a drawn-out training camp 'hold in' in 2021. The Steelers saw the return on investment, as Watt solidified himself as one of the best defensive players for a franchise that's long prided itself on that side of the football. He already ranks first in Steelers history in sacks (108) and forced fumbles (33) and sits second in tackles for loss (126). He also tied Michael Strahan's single-season record with 22.5 sacks in 2021 on the way to winning Defensive Player of the Year. However, those years of dominance from the seven-time Pro Bowler and four-time first-team All-Pro have largely been wasted. Inadequate quarterback play dragged the Steelers down, and their defense wilted against quality competition in the playoffs. Both sides had to make hard decisions. Did the Steelers want to continue to dedicate a significant portion of their salary cap to defense by making Watt the NFL's highest-paid non-QB for the second time in his career? Advertisement Maybe more importantly: Did Watt still believe in the vision, the front office and the coaching staff to not only end the playoff drought but also legitimately compete for Pittsburgh's elusive seventh Lombardi Trophy? The answers came last week when Watt signed a handsome three-year extension worth $123 million with $108 million guaranteed. Watt, who turns 31 in October, is now tied to the Steelers through the 2028 season and his 34th birthday. As much as this is a big-money bet on Watt continuing to perform at a Defensive Player of the Year level into his mid-30s, it's also a wager on Watt's part that the Steelers won't waste whatever's left of his prime the way they did the first eight years of his postseason career. Asked why he felt comfortable putting his faith in the Steelers, Watt pointed to general manager Omar Khan's splashy offseason. 'It's all about being aggressive,' Watt said. 'I love to see the front office be aggressive and go out and acquire guys that we all truly feel like are going to help us get over the hump.' That approach made the Steelers the story of the offseason in many ways. Khan's phone has been busy for months, as he traded for Pro Bowl receiver DK Metcalf, signed Aaron Rodgers after a prolonged courtship and dealt lightning-rod receiver George Pickens to Dallas. 'The way we ended last year wasn't good enough,' Khan said Wednesday. 'We knew changes had to be made.' The most recent move from the wheeling-and-dealing GM was perhaps the most surprising. Khan traded All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick to Miami for a pair of Pro Bowlers, cornerback Jalen Ramsey and tight end Jonnu Smith. 'I definitely didn't expect it,' inside linebacker Patrick Queen said. 'I actually woke up and said, 'Wow, they sent me.' I thought I got traded for a second. It's crazy.' Patrick Queen on expectations for the NFL's highest-paid defense: 'It's a lot of money on defense. The biggest thing is to go out there and prove it.' He acknowledges the Steelers D 'sloped off' at the end of the season and 'it's supposed to be the other way.' — Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) July 23, 2025 For an organization long known for a patient and conservative approach, the past few months show an evolved way of doing business (even if the Steelers will employ a QB age 36 or older for the fourth time in six years). Coach Mike Tomlin called the maneuvering 'new territory.' The big-name acquisitions have led many to say the Steelers are 'all in.' Asked about this narrative, Khan acknowledged there's a level of urgency to win this year, but he insists it's not at the expense of the longer-term vision, especially with the team expecting to have 10 to 12 draft picks in 2026, providing a natural 'youth movement.' Advertisement 'Our goal is to win the Super Bowl,' Khan said. 'We're building this team to win the Super Bowl this year. That's our goal. 'At same time, part of my job is to manage (and) make sure we don't sacrifice or do things that'll hurt us in the future. Because our goal is obviously sustained success over time. But yeah, we're looking to win a Super Bowl.' Over the next three weeks, training camp practices will begin to reveal how these new puzzle pieces fit. Tomlin gave a few hints. He said Smith, the new tight end, has the versatility to line up wide, in the slot or attached to the line of scrimmage more traditionally. Perhaps he and Rodgers can help the offense improve after it finished 16th in scoring last year (21.5 points per game). Defensively, Tomlin said Ramsey, Darius Slay (who signed as a free agent in March) and Joey Porter Jr. will allow the Steelers to play 'man-to-man versus anyone.' He also suggested that all three will be used on the field together with few exceptions. 'Make no mistake, those top three corners that I mentioned — Jalen Ramsey, Slay and Joey Porter Jr. — they're going to be on the field,' Tomlin said. 'I don't care what (personnel grouping) offenses come out in.' T.J. Watt: "I think it's about getting back to being a really, really hard-nosed football team… "Teams need to know what's coming when they see the Pittsburgh Steelers defense." — Mike DeFabo (@MikeDeFabo) July 23, 2025 The supporting cast has changed, and the Steelers will need Rodgers to play at a higher level than last year to compete in a conference that features Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow, but they also need Watt to stay healthy and continue to perform at a DPOY level. Making about three times ($41 million annually) as much as the starting quarterback ($13.65 million) in a quarterback-driven league, Watt must continue to be a game-wrecker to achieve his goal of hoisting the Lombardi — and he knows it. 'You see the aggressiveness that we're taking organizationally,' Watt said Wednesday. 'I'm doing everything I can personally, whether that's moving around (the defensive front), mentoring younger guys as much as I possibly can, asking guys who have won Super Bowls before, whether here in this building or not, what we can do. And I think that's really all that we can do. And just keep putting our heads down and working.' Advertisement 'We can sit here and talk and talk and talk about not winning a playoff game (and) how much I want to do it. But at the end of the day, that's just lip service. It's all about what we do. That's why I'm excited to be back here. That's why I'm excited to get to know each and every guy on this new team that we have and get to work.'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
T.J. Watt bothered he hasn't won playoff game with Steelers yet: 'I think that's absolutely unacceptable'
The Pittsburgh Steelers have 32 franchise members in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. T.J. Watt is putting together a résumé that could allow him to join that fraternity someday. But the premier pass rusher knows he's missing something that many of those Steelers greats share: playoff success and, more notably, a Super Bowl ring. "Winning a Super Bowl is no doubt motivating me and winning a playoff game is absolutely motivating me," Watt said in an episode of "In Depth with Graham Bensinger" that will air in its entirety this September. "It's something that we haven't been able to do since I've been there. I think that's absolutely unacceptable, and that is what's attached to my name right now. I have to answer for that. As much as it sucks, when you say T.J. Watt, X, Y, Z, you also say, T.J. Watt, not won a playoff game." Watt agreed to a three-year, $123 million extension with Pittsburgh last week, making him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history for the second time in his six-time All-Pro career. A 2017 first-round pick of the Steelers, Watt has 108 career sacks. That's 5.5 more than Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles Garrett and the sixth most among active NFL players. Watt won NFL Defensive Player of the Year during the 2021 campaign, in which he tied New York Giants Hall of Fame defensive end Michael Strahan's single-season league record of 22.5 sacks. Despite his laundry list of individual accomplishments, the 31-year-old Watt enters his ninth NFL season still in search of his first playoff victory. "Oh, it genuinely bothers me because I'm a part of those teams," Watt told Bensinger. "As much as I'm only one player, as much as whoever's one player, you are putting your hand in the pile, too. I feel like I can make a difference enough to help win a playoff game and to have that to your legacy, especially when you play for an organization that has six Super Bowls ... when 'Mean' Joe Greene comes back, it's 'Mean' Joe Greene, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, I don't even know how many Super Bowls he's won. Jerome Bettis, one or two-time Super Bowl champion. It's like T.J. Watt, 'Yeah, great individual player, but what's the team's success?' And that's what really bothers me." Greene, an overpowering defensive tackle, won four Super Bowls with the Steelers during the franchise's resurgent dynasty in the 1970s. Bettis, a barreling running back, helped Pittsburgh return to the top of the league and deliver longtime head coach Bill Cowher his elusive Lombardi Trophy at the end of the 2005 season. Watt's quote, however, proves his point. It's not the number of rings that matters as much as the fact that those players won a Super Bowl during their time with the Steelers. Watt is hungry for one, too. He knows he needs to start with a playoff win, which Pittsburgh's been deprived of since the 2016 season.
Fox News
6 days ago
- Sport
- Fox News
Steelers veteran Cameron Heyward reveals 'hardest part' of training camp in touching post
Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward entered Year 15 when training camp started for the team ahead of the 2025 season, and he's still performing at a high level. Heyward played all 17 games for the Steelers last year and recorded 11 pass breakups and eight sacks on his way to his fourth First-Team All-Pro selection. But with training camp opening up, saying goodbye to his family for a few weeks appears to be getting tougher for the 36-year-old. He expressed it as much in a social media post on Wednesday. "Hardest part of camp is kissing my kids goodbye," he wrote on X. Luckily for Heyward, he's been with the Steelers for his entire career and is unlikely to play anywhere else as it winds down. Heyward was born in Pittsburgh but played high school football in Georgia before he attended Ohio State. The Steelers selected him in the first round of the 2011 draft, and he's been in the black and gold ever since. Heyward has 88.5 sacks, 718 tackles and 199 QB hits in 211 games for the Steelers. He is still set to start on a defensive line that's projected to include rookie Derrick Harmon and Keeanu Benton. T.J. Watt, Patrick Queen, Payton Wilson and Alex Highsmith will likely be the linebackers behind them. The Steelers were 10-7 in 2024, making the playoffs for the fourth time in five years. Despite the struggling offense, the defense was still top-notch. Pittsburgh ranked eighth in points allowed and 12th in yards allowed.
