While oddsmakers may think that Myles Garrett is the favorite for the NFL Defensive Player of The Year award, Pittsburgh Steelers OLB T.J. Watt is getting love from at least one national analyst. ESPN’s Bill Barnwell released his award picks following the conclusion of the regular season, and he selected Watt ahead of Garrett and Micah Parsons as his Defensive Player of The Year.
“I still have to lean toward Watt, though, because he has been more productive across the board beyond hurries. Watt has 19 sacks to Parsons’s 14. He has 36 quarterback knockdowns to Parsons’ 33. He has four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries to Parsons’ one. He has an interception, a defensive touchdown and six batted passes. Parsons has zeroes in those categories,” Barnwell writes.
He also credits Watt for making game-changing plays.
“In terms of season-changing plays, Watt has made more big plays in close games for the Steelers than Parsons, whose rush to win the game against the Seahawks stands out as a notable exception. The Steelers wouldn’t have a winning record if not for Watt, who has far and away been the best defensive player on a team that’s been utterly dependent on its defense to win games.”
Watt’s importance to the Steelers can’t be overstated. With an offense that really struggled for the large majority of the season, it was Watt who was able to get sacks and force turnovers along with fellow OLB Alex Highsmith to get the Steelers the ball back and create opportunities. It’s why I’ve said numerous times that just labeling him as a great defensive player isn’t fair. He’s one of the best players, period, in football, and it’s due to his ability to create so many opportunities for Pittsburgh’s offense. He’s easily the team’s most valuable player.
He also simply has better stats than Garrett and Parsons, as Barnwell broke down. It’s unfathomable, frankly, that Watt isn’t the favorite to win this award just because of how big of an impact he’s had for the Steelers.
Barnwell also expressed some love for Joey Porter Jr. While Porter didn’t crack his top three in Defensive Rookie of The Year voting, it was a matter of playing time, not performance, that kept Porter off the list.
“Joey Porter Jr. has been one of the league’s top corners over the second half of the season and didn’t get hurt, but he was a backup until Week 7,” Barnwell writes. “Porter or [Devon] Witherspoon might be the NFL’s best rookies on a snap-by-snap basis, but they missed too much time to make it into the end-of-season top three.”
Porter emerged after taking over as a starter in Week Eight but given that he was largely a backup until then, it’s understandable why he isn’t getting the same consideration as guys who started and maintained their play over the course of a full season.
It’s good to see Watt get some love on a national level for an award he absolutely deserves to win. Hopefully, he can pull it out over Garrett and Parsons, and he’s going to be a player the Steelers dearly miss as he recovers from a Grade 2 MCL sprain.
