Over the last several weeks, there’s been increased chatter about moving T.J. Watt around. Almost always the Pittsburgh Steelers’ left outside linebacker, the Steelers experimented with him playing his old spot. Right outside linebacker. That’s where he aligned as a rookie in 2017 before shifting over to the left side the following season, where he’s said he’s more comfortable rushing from.
But with all the attention he sees, the slides, the chips, the alignments that force him wide, Pittsburgh has at least toyed with lining him somewhere else. It’s what most of the top pass rushers do. Nick Bosa, Myles Garrett, and Micah Parsons they bounce around the field to become a moving target as opposed to a stagnant rusher.
While Pittsburgh isn’t anywhere near that point, and it’s hard to argue the results (all Watt is done is have a Hall of Fame career, predictable spot be damned) they are at least occasionally changing him up. Against the Los Angeles Rams in Week Seven, Watt played three snaps at right outside linebacker.
In Week Nine against the Tennessee Titans, the Steelers did something different. On two snaps, he aligned as an off-ball linebacker. Now, I’m not counting Pittsburgh’s 3-4 “over” front where the shift side OLB is off-ball in the A gap. I’m talking about pass-rushing situations. The Steelers had a three-outside linebacker packaged rush for Watt.
The first occurred on 3rd and 7 late in the third quarter. Pittsburgh employed three outside linebackers – Nick Herbig, Markus Golden, and Watt – with Watt in the B gap between right guard and right tackle. These snaps did not have an inside linebacker and came out of Pittsburgh’s 2-3-6 dime package. Instead of a one-tech and three-tech along the defensive line like you normally see, DT Larry Ogunjobi is head up on the center as a zero-tech.
On the snap, Watt loops around from the B gap to the opposite B gap between the left guard and the left tackle. The d-line slants down to draw the eyes of the center and left guard, freeing Watt.
Tennessee is calling a RB screen here so we really don’t get to see the rush unfold as intended but the slanting actually helps Ogunjobi and Cam Heyward take down the back while Watt chases in and makes sure he doesn’t go anywhere. Still, you see the design and intent.
Pittsburgh went back to it late in the game. On 4th and 7 on the Titans’ final drive, they showed the same look. Three outside linebackers with Alex Highsmith, Herbig, and Watt. Here, Watt is in the A gap between center and right guard. And you don’t get a zero-tech like before. Instead, Keeanu Benton and Heyward are both aligned as three-techs.
The post-snap rush is similar. Watt again loops around though here, he rushes off the left tackle’s hip. The rest of the rush slants down, including Highsmith into the B-gap. It ends up leaving Watt 1v1 on the running back, a clear matchup win for Pittsburgh, though Cam Heyward’s pressure forces the ball out before Watt can get home. A penalty on CB Joey Porter Jr. negated the whole play but again, you can see what the Steelers were trying to do.
Pittsburgh only used this for two plays. It has to come in obvious pass situations and the Steelers are still content overall having Watt rush from his left side. He did align as a right end for one snap, too.
Moving top pass rushers in an off-ball role has become really popular this year. The Steelers could take it a step further. As analyst Ben Fennell pointed out, basically all the top guys are seeing reps over A gap and often rushing the center up the middle. This could be something Pittsburgh does with Watt. Get him 1v1 on a center not used to blocking a smaller/bendier rusher like Watt as opposed to a 300-pound defensive tackle.
With 9.5 sacks through eight games, Watt has still had a ton of success rushing from his normal spot. But I’d like to see Pittsburgh mix things up a little bit. Especially with LB Cole Holcomb out for the season, there could be a couple more opportunities to toy around with this look.
Pittsburgh using three outside linebackers at once before isn’t brand new. Alex Highsmith did it his rookie year. Melvin Ingram did it during his short 2021 stay. But I like seeing Watt get on his feet, even if it’s just something else for offenses to consider. This won’t be used often but there’s a chance to really scheme Watt up instead of focusing on his talent to win out.
