At this point in Pittsburgh Steelers’ outside linebacker T.J. Watt’s career, it’s expected that he ranks consistently among the best pass rushers in the NFL, both in terms of grades and production.
What is not expected though is that veteran interior defensive lineman Montravius Adams grades out among the best interior pass rushers from a specific alignment.
According to Pro Football Focus, that’s exactly what occurred in the 2023 season.
That showed up in the grade from Pro Football Focus, particularly when he rushed from the center-right position.
Adams, who played 416 snaps last season for the Steelers, was a solid rotational piece on the interior for the Black and Gold. Though he missed a chunk of games following a Week 9 ankle injury against the Tennessee Titans, Adams was a force when on the field, particularly from a pass rush perspective.
In PFF’s metrics on pass rushers aligned at center-right, Adams had the fourth-best grade in the NFL on 35 pass rush snaps, grading out at 91.4 overall with six pressures and a 22.86% win rate.
Only New York’s Dexter Lawrence, San Francisco’s Javon Hargrave, and Minnesota’s Danielle Hunter were ahead of him in grades, and Hargrave and Hunter each had just 14 and 12 snaps, respectively.
On the season, Adams graded out at a 58.3 overall from Pro Football Focus, including a 50.5 against the run and a 66.0 against the run. He was much better on tape than those grades show, which is typically the case with PFF.
Two of his best performances came in the final two weeks of the regular season when Adams generated four pressures and a pass rush grade of 90.8 from PFF against the Seattle Seahawks and then a grade of 70.6 against Baltimore.
Then, in the playoff loss to Buffalo, Adams had a QB pressure in just 11 snaps.
He’s back for another season in Pittsburgh and should once again be a key rotational piece, bringing his surprising quickness and disruptive ability on the interior.
Then, there’s T.J. Watt.
Watt led the NFL in sacks with 19.0, set the Steelers’ career sacks record in the process, and moved closer and closer to a Hall of Fame career with another dominant run.
Though he lost out to Cleveland’s Myles Garrett for the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award, Watt was one of the top outside move rushers in the NFL last season.
T.J. Watt graded out at a 93.1 overall on outside moves, which came on 227 pass rush snaps. Watt generated 41 pressures off of that, adding a win rate of 21.15%.
“Another former Defensive Player of the Year makes this list. Watt’s first step is among the most reactive and explosive in the league,” PFF’s Mason Cameron writes of Watt for PFF.com. “He quickly beats tackles to the edge while showcasing a nasty cross-chop or double swipe.
“Last season, Watt made artful use of moves to own the outside edge, allowing him to rack up the second-most sacks (13) and third-most pressures (41) on outside pass-rush moves.”
Watt’s first step and ability to get upfield and turn the corner has helped make him one of the best pass rushers in football, bar none. He has a great cross-chop/club move, too, and uses it often, with great success.
While his win percentage might not be the best for EDGE defenders, nobody makes more impactful plays in games than T.J. Watt, period. He’s a wrecking ball, even when opponents know what’s coming.
That’s what makes him so special and a future Hall of Famer.
