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With mandatory minicamps starting across the NFL, contract negotiations and holdouts have been thrust to the front of the conversation. James Cook, Trey Hendrickson, and Terry McLaurin want new contracts, but Cook showed up to minicamp, while the rest are holding out. One of the most prominent players in this situation is T.J. Watt, who has a problem with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Watt is supposedly holding out in minicamp for as long as it takes to get a new deal. He is going into his final year of his current contract. He aims for a big pay raise, especially after Myles Garrett recently signed a record-breaking extension that pays him $40 million annually. He is one of the league's best pass rushers, and ESPN analyst Marcus Spears said he deserves the same money that Garrett got.
“I'm talking about $40 million a year,” Spears said. “He's been more of a catalyst for this football team winning games late than anyone else on this football team. So I think he should be having this conversation now.”
Spears is not wrong when he says that Watt has been a massive key to the Steelers winning games. Watt makes his mark throughout the game with pressures, tackles, sacks, and turnovers, but there's an argument that the timing of his plays is the difference.
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He always seems to get a game-saving or game-winning sack or turnover that ends the game for the Steelers. That awareness and innate ability to make clutch plays is why Spears and others argue for him being compensated in a record-tying or breaking deal.
Watt was drafted with the 30th pick in the 2017 NFL Draft and has been dominant since. In his NFL career, he has 462 tackles, 108 sacks, 33 forced fumbles, and seven interceptions. Last season, he also passed a massive milestone, hitting 100 career sacks.
Watt's on-field success has translated into being a seven-time Pro Bowler, a four-time AP First-Team All-Pro, and winning the Defensive Player of the Year award in 2021 while holding the Steelers' all-time sack record.
The Steelers have had a history of spending responsibly. Hence, it makes sense why they might be hesitant on first glance, but the evidence clearly shows that Watt is one of the few defensive players who can swing a game in his team's favor. Spears' argument might ultimately win out, but it will take time for the extension to come to fruition.
