T.J. Watt is often a mild-mannered individual who is pretty even-keeled when he speaks to the media throughout the week. But something happens on gameday—similar to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde—that transforms Watt into a whole new beast.
Pat Freiermuth and Christian Kuntz joked about it on the Christian Kuntz podcast a few weeks ago. If you see Watt on Saturday, or especially Sunday, steer clear. Chances are good that he is in his flow state, and you aren’t going to want to talk to him when he is there.
Justin Fields also talked about it on Cam Heyward’s Not Just Football podcast. He described it like he was in a movie, fired up and ready to go to war. According to Fields, he spiked his helmet to the floor and started yelling with a completely unexpected ferocity.
Heyward appeared on Randy Baumann’s DVE Morning Show on Friday, and they had a little fun with the wild pre-game side of Watt. The hosts of the show asked Heyward if they needed to be worried about Watt suffering an injury before a game during one of these speeches.
“The only thing you gotta worry about is T.J. not having enough oxygen because he puts everything into those 15, 20 seconds,” Heyward said. “You’re like, man, he’s about to burst a blood vessel in that time. T.J. definitely gets riled up.”
It’s probably no big surprise that Watt’s pre-game alter ego gets unleashed on the field. He channels that energy into being one of the best defensive players ever to play the game of football. With just a half sack, he will become the second fastest to ever reach 100 sacks in NFL history behind Hall of Fame legend Reggie White.
If you ever happen to run into Watt at your local Giant Eagle on a Saturday, it is probably best to avoid the urge to get an autograph. That man is in the zone.
