ESPN put out an interesting list this morning, ranking the best football player at their age from 14 years old to 40 years old. Only one Steelers player made the list, with T.J. Watt being named the best 29-year-old, ahead of Kansas City Chiefs DT Chris Jones.
“A savvy rusher who uses speed, power and technique to set up offensive tackles, Watt is a natural disruptor. In addition to the forced fumbles, he has batted down 28 passes and grabbed seven interceptions in his career. The 2021 Defensive Player of the Year is a game-changer who creates impact plays for the Pittsburgh defense,” the outlet wrote.
While Jones has been a key cog up the middle on three Super Bowl-champion Chiefs teams, Watt’s individual dominance puts him ahead on this list. He’s tied for the all-time single-season sack record and is eighth among active players with 96.5 sacks. Barring injury, he could hit 100 career sacks before his 30th birthday on Oct. 11.
Watt is a special player, but whereas Jones and the Chiefs have the team success, Watt has yet to win a playoff game with the Steelers. It’s something that he wants to change, and it’s contributed to a different vibe in the Steelers’ locker room.
Jones is a five-time All-Pro, making the first team each of the last two seasons. Despite playing one more season than Watt, he doesn’t have the same proficiency at getting to the quarterback with 75.5 career sacks, although he did have 15.5 sacks in both 2018 and 2022. He also finished third in Defensive Player of the Year voting in ’22, a season where Watt missed time with an injury. But when he’s healthy, Watt is the best pass rusher in football and a true game wrecker, and for my money, the best defensive player in football. Jones’ accolades normally would be enough for him to be named the best player at his age, but going up against Watt isn’t easy.
No other Steelers were a runner-up on the list. Cameron Heyward fell behind Trent Williams and Demario Davis, while Lamar Jackson and Fred Warner were listed ahead of Minkah Fitzpatrick. Those two and Watt are the only Steelers who you could realistically expect to be on a list like this, but there are a lot of talented players their age, which made it tough to crack the top two.
Hopefully, Watt can start to have some of the same playoff success Jones has enjoyed as the Steelers look to make some noise with a revamped offense in 2024.
