T.J. Watt, like the Pittsburgh Steelers, are right where we are: sitting at home being mad. Although they managed to make the playoffs in 2023, they lost in the first round. It has now been seven years without a postseason victory, the longest drought in franchise history. The question is what to do next.
The first step is always taking stock of what happened and what is left. That’s part of the exit meeting process, in which coaches meet with each player. They discuss the season and their expectations moving forward—and potentially their role within it.
While we might not know all the details about what goes on between head coach Mike Tomlin and his players during these exit meetings, we do know how we would conduct those meetings if they were let up to us. So here are the Depot’s exit meetings for the Steelers’ roster following the 2023 season.
Player: T.J. Watt
Position: Outside Linebacker
Experience: 7 Years
To sum up T.J. Watt’s season and professional career in one short, pithy sentence: a bunch of sacks and no playoff wins. He has been with the Steelers for seven years and they’ve never won a playoff game during that span. It’s the longest the team has ever gone without winning a playoff game, so clearly Watt is the reason. Even though he couldn’t play for them in the playoffs this year due to injury.
Exit meetings for Watt are trite at this point. We all know the deal. He plays exceptionally well, still manages to come in second to someone else, and the team doesn’t win enough. Wash, rinse, repeat. Nineteen sacks in 17 games, four forced fumbles, even a touchdown mixed in this year. Great. Dominant. Not conducive to a postseason run, apparently.
At least officially, Watt doesn’t give a rat’s behind about the NFL Defensive Player of the Year award. He already has one. He knows championships are the measure of his career, and he hasn’t even come close to one yet. That is the missing piece of his puzzle. Winning a game in the playoffs would be a nice start.
Otherwise, what is there to say? He is supremely gifted and talented. Watt is not the fastest or the strongest or the quickest, but he gets more out of his body. You can argue about pass-rush win rate if you want but Watt produces for the Steelers, consistently.
Barring his injury-plagued 2022 season, Watt has recorded at least 13 sacks every year since 2018. He has at least 15 sacks in each of his past four full seasons. And he is one of four players in NFL history to record 19 or more sacks multiple times. Of course, he also owns a share of the NFL single-season sacks record.
And is 0-3 in playoff games when he plays, 0-4 overall whether he plays or not. If you’re tired of reading about it just imagine how tired he is of living it. Head coach Mike Tomlin said his playoff losing streak isn’t his players’ baggage. But it is in Watt’s case because his entire career encompasses that streak.
