At this point in his Hall of Fame-caliber career, Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt has accomplished all that there is to accomplish in the regular season, especially from an individual standpoint.
NFL Defensive Player of the Year. All-Pro. Pro Bowler. AFC North division title.
Now, entering his seventh NFL season, it’s all about the playoffs for Watt.
In his first six seasons, the Steelers have made the playoffs just three times, losing all three times in the Wild Card or Divisional round, including to the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2017 (45-42), 2020 to the Cleveland Browns (48-37) and 2021 to the Kansas City Chiefs (42-21).
Speaking with 102.5 WDVE’s Mike Prisuta after an Organized Team Activity session at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on the South Side earlier in the week, Watt lamented the lack of playoff success and said that it’s all about playoffs for him moving forward. Regular season success and accolades don’t matter as much.
“I care about the regular season too, but it’s being here, what, six years now and don’t have a playoff win? I mean, it’s not acceptable in any ways,” Watt said to Prisuta, via dve.iHeart.com. “Obviously there’s so much that goes into getting in the position to even be in the playoffs. But that’s the ultimate goal. You can’t shy away from wanting to be a Super Bowl champion; that’s everybody’s goal. So it’s not like I’m not gonna talk about it.”
In Watt’s six seasons in the NFL, the Steelers have won 60 games, on average 10 a season. That’s rather strong, especially for a regular-season record, averaging out to either 10-6 or 10-7 overall.
But that dreaded 0-3 in the playoffs continues to gnaw at Watt, and rightfully so.
While he already has the individual accolades that should land him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame some day alongside his brother, J.J., it sure would be nice for him to have some playoff success and maybe even a Lombardi trophy to his credit, too. Of course, playoff success — or lack thereof — isn’t an unfamiliar thing for the Watt family.
J.J., in his 12-year career in the NFL, saw his teams in Houston and Arizona go just 4-6 in the playoffs, never getting past the divisional round. Of course, those four playoff wins are four more than T.J. has experienced, but the fact that two of the most dominant pass rushers in NFL history in the Watt brothers hasn’t gotten past the divisional round is rather absurd.
Entering his age 29 season (he turns 29 on Oct. 11), Watt has his sights set on some playoff success. That doesn’t mean he’ll take the regular season off and skate through the 17-game schedule. What it does mean though is that he’s not worried about chasing individual accolades or getting comfortable with regular-season success.
It’s all about the postseason for Watt. That lack of success in that arena so far is unacceptable to him.
