Will TJ Watt ever be worth this last contract?

I was happy when he signed because I thought he still had something left in the tank. Now I wish they would have traded him to get a decent return. He said previously he would be willing to move around the line but so far he hasn’t done that more than once or twice a game. His play this year has really dropped off and it is not injury related. It seems like a lack of effort more than anything. Maybe the fire is gone and he is coasting along now. 4 sacks in 7 games is very out of character for someone of his talent. SDOT brought up that it correlates with the birth of his son. I don’t think I have ever agreed with him on anything but there may be a point there. Whatever it is, it’s not what the contract is worth.

 

I'm not sure what Watt having a kid has to do with his lack of production, last I checked father time is undefeated. He better step it up because he's on pace for like 10 sacks not even close to being worth 41 million a year.

 

TBD.


T.J. Watt has been MIA this season for certain. That said, I dont think this is merely father time at work. Not having him move around as he should is also a major factor.



Myles Garrett does this. Micah Parsons does this. Maxx Crosby does this. Hell, even Khalil Mack did this a season ago; a much older player who can still keep up with the best. Before he got hurt, Nick Bosa did as well. T.J. Watt doesnt.



This isnt solely on T.J. Watt. This befalls on coaching. While T.J. Watt isnt blameless, both Austin and Tomlin have failed him thus far in 2025; the entire defense no less.

 

Not a chance.

 

They moved Myles around for sure, but he was completely destroying whomever they had on him. I think the debate is over.

 

Having a child will definitely change your life. Maybe he is being very careful these days where as before he was more aggressive. I am not saying that is the reason but that it could factor into it.

 

Used to have a high security clearance. We even had a psychologist where I worked. I would sometimes bs with him. He told me one time that there are a few events that have so much impact on your psyche that he thought that they should redo the psychologist interview for your security clearance when people went thru them. Those events were getting married, getting divorced and having a kid. He said having a kid was the one that affected people the most.

Don't know if this applies to TJ, but you can't just ignore personal life events when you are assessing why someone is performing the way they are. People do not leave their bags at the door when they walk into work.

 

Ya, having kids most definitely changes perspective on life and priorities. Maybe his topmost (and only?) priority in life was football before, but I'm willing to bet that football is no longer his highest priority.

 

I hate to be the a-hole that brings this up but I will. If your feeling is he will not be worth this or his last contract then I must ask was Ben? They got way way way more creative in order to justify that final amount he was due even when it might have been more clear he was done.

 

Ben certainly lost a step after he got married and had kids.

 

This conversation is about TJ Watt, not Ben. Roethlisberger dropped off for sure but at least he won playoff games and SB’s which somewhat provided some justification for the final bigger contract. TJ on the other hand seemed to disappear in the post season and hasn’t even won a playoff game.

 

I blame the scheme for failing to adjust to opposing offenses. QBs are just getting the ball to the WRs too fast. We have to take that first read away so TJ and Highsmith can feast. I think its too soon to say he's lost a step and isn't worth the deal. If QBs are holding the ball 4-5 seconds per play and he's still not making plays, then yes I'd agree that he's lost a step. My biggest beef with our 4 man front is the lack of batted balls. We're not blocking pass lanes atm.

 

I never thought it was a good idea to reset the market with his first big contract. DPOY is nice if you care about individual accomplishments but as far as team success, those contracts weren’t good investments IMO.

 

It correlates with him getting the bag. A lot of players go into coast mode after 'taking care of their family'....

Steelers need to quit the sentimental contracts. It isn't a good way to maintain a strong roster.

Sentimental contracts include Roethlisberger's last, Heyward's last (he's lived up to it fortunately), Watt's last, heck, throw in Highsmith's extension. Where has he been since signing his extension?

 

This is why I thought AR would have a great season. New love tends to fire a man up.

A little over a month after Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback revealed he got married—after previously confirming he was dating a woman named Brittani—he shared why he still feels like he’s in the honeymoon phase.

 

I'm so tired of that excuse. Watt wasn't moving around much when he was the best defensive player in the league a few years ago. Teams were double-teaming him then. Teams were chipping him then. Teams were holding him then. He wrecked them anyway. Now, he can't seem to do much of anything. The simple truth is that he is already showing significant decline and it is likely to only get worse.

So no, he's not going to be worth his current contract. I wasn't happy with it at the time and I have seen nothing this season to change my mind.

 

It is the scheme.
I've isolated him so many times on film and he never stops.. He is always near the ball constantly.
Teams are not having to chip Hightower, sometimes they just let him take an outside route.
Cam is pushing the middle at times but isn't the same Cam he was 5 years ago and isn't dominating.
Harmon looks promising.

Lebeau used to mix those LB's blitzes. Forcing the extra blocker to guess or make decisions.
He got the most from his LB's.

As a GM, I probably would have made a decision between TJ or Watt.
Normally, as players drop from their peak, teams will move on and collect picks or players for those types of players.
Right now, teams that are in the playoff hunt and missing that piece, Cam or TJ would be a fine addition. (Of course, TJ's contract makes that prohibitive now)
Moving Cam or even Hightower would benefit the team now. The problem is, Omar isn't thinking that.
This team isn't 'on the rise' as I mentioned in another thread, like say the Patriots or Denver.. young teams with a lot of potential (they've got some nice pieces in place)

I hate it for Rogers as I think he could have driven us to some interesting playoffs, if he had dangerous WR's.
We got TE's and Pat is a good trade potential while I mention that.
I am a little less enamored with Aurther Smith's offense. Sometimes I see a flash of brilliance and other times I wonder what the heck.

 

Heyward has been a consistent disappointment, IMO. He's disappeared in every playoff game.... and other than an occasional tip of a pass, he disappears in games. He's one of the most overrated Steelers of all time... if not THE most overrated. Also, doesn't do well anymore vs the Run. He and Benton get thrashed on a regular basis.

I remember a contingent of Steelers fans bashing Jason Gildon back in the late 90's and early 00's. Gildon was slightly overrated, but the sacks were always there.... even if they were coverage sacks or Oline mishap. Heyward has very little to show these days.

 

He will have his moments. But I would say no. The contract is ridiculous.

This is why they need to keep Herbig and find a new home for Highsmith.

He has Dan Moore syndrome. He only wants to play the left side. And yes the coaching staff has failed in utilizing him on different sides. You make him do it. But alas the Prehistoric defense will continue as the blame will fall on the Offense...

 

When did he get married? Does that coincide with his production slide? Thumping can take a lot from your legs.

 

I don't care what Tomlin says, this defense has been under producing for the past few seasons. They only succeeded when there was a splash play, now those have dried up.

The script for the opposition has been written, get the ball out fast.

 

It goes to the credibility of the supposition. If you(global not person specific) are one of the people who said they had no problem offering Ben an extension on top of the 47 million he was supposed to recieve in that final year of his contract by adding voidable years in order to lessen the deep deep hole they created by constantly restructuring his deal than its hypocritical at best to have a problem with Watts contract.

Now if as you point out people can justify Ben's deal because he QB'd three SB teams and actually won a playoff game despite the huge decline in his play for at least the last four years of his career. Watt has been DPOY, robbed out of a second one by a completely made up stat, has had dbl digit sacks in multiple years, ints, ff, fumble recoveries, tackles for loss, and wrecker of games(sorry GoT reference lol) and is putting up sack numbers faster than 3/4ths of his peers. I bring this up not to avoid the topic of is Watt worth it but as a baseline of what fans tolerate in terms of contracts.

Let's set the Ben thing aside and look at current peers on defense who just got paid. Crosby, Garrett, Hendrickson, and Parsons. Crosby has never won a playoff game and the Raiders dont look to anytime soon. Garrett was gifted a DPOY and won at least a playoff game but the Browns are going backwards. Hendrickson at least has been to a SB but without Burrow and Chase doubtful they are going back. Parsons as of this moment has nothing, zip zelch nadda. That's four of the top paid defensive players in the league who are getting comparable money to Watt and have equal or lesser stats to Watt. So are we as fans expecting a discount? Those four other guys to be traded because they too are hardly worth the money their contracts are paying them?

Let's drop all of this and talk about what is the real issue and that is that a lot of fans want magic beans. They want to trade Watt when his stock is at an all time high so they can get draft picks and/or players who will be skill level TBD. Then when the trade is done and the draft picks used they will be bitching about how much the defense sucks. How they can't create any pressure on the quarterback. How Herbig and Sawyer blow because they didnt become the next Lloyd and Greene. At that point we will be right back here talking about chasing more magic beans.

Watt has a big contract and with that comes big responsibilities but even some of the all time greats had trouble doing it all by themselves. It's a team sport and the defense from coaching to the practice squad is a giant pile of suck but dont for one second believe that Watt on the final year of his deal or traded away in the past offseason makes a dent in that giant pile. The suck is all over them all.

 

I think a lot of us are sometimes guilty of comparing TJ watt to TJ watt. Compare him to the rest of the league and he is still a very good player. I know that I certainly get frustrated by his lack of production at times, but you're right with a lot of what you are saying.