After countless debates regarding his claim for the 2023 Defensive Player of the Year award, T.J. Watt emphatically announced his presence in the Pittsburgh Steelers' first game of the 2024-25 campaign. The All-Pro linebacker terrorized the Atlanta Falcons and clinched an 18-10 win for his team by sacking quarterback Kirk Cousins.
Though, what might keep Watt up is the big sack he did not get credited with in Sunday's opener. The 29-year-old bulldozed his way past the Falcons' offensive line and into Cousins for a strip sack near the end of the first half. What could have been a lead-preserving play was instead nullified by a flag. The official ruled that Watt was offside.
Atlanta capitalized and ultimately scored a touchdown to take a 10-9 lead into halftime. Watt was irate and unleashed his fury. Apparently, though, he received some unofficial vindication.
When discussing the penalty postgame, the elite pass rusher said that the referee in question admitted he made the wrong call upon further examination, via Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio. Ouch. That would be especially stinging for No. 90, as he took pride in being able to get such a brilliant jump in the first place.
Did Steelers' T.J. Watt get even better?
Watt claims he gleaned important insight, or a “golden nugget” as he called it, when studying film in preparation for the road matchup versus the Falcons. Regardless of what was uttered behind closed doors, the ruling will of course stand. He left his hand prints all over the outcome of the game, nevertheless.
In addition to the game-ending sack, the No. 30 overall selection in the 2017 NFL Draft posted two tackles for loss and was a constant nuisance for the Atlanta fans who gathered in Mercedes-Benz Stadium. He relished the Steelers' victory, which was unforeseen by many, but is also not letting the officiating crew off the hook.
Perhaps T.J. Watt will get the benefit of the doubt in Week 2 when Pittsburgh visits the Denver Broncos (0-1). And if this powerhouse did in fact figure out a way to get off the block even quicker, quarterbacks might as well book an appointment with their chiropractor now.
Follow Us
Subscribe
