In his transition from coach to analyst, Bill Belichick is unveiling his first-ever All-Midseason team. On his Coaches podcast, he made his picks picks for the best players at every position through the (rough) halfway point of the year, selecting everything from quarterback to the left guard on the punt-coverage team. Four Pittsburgh Steelers made Belichick’s list: DT Cam Heyward, OLB T.J. Watt, K Chris Boswell, and ST’er Miles Killebrew.
None of the four inclusions are terribly surprising. Heyward, Watt, and Boswell are playing as well at their position as anyone this season while Killebrew is someone opposing special teams units spend extra resources to account for.
“Just keeps on going,” Belichick quipped about Heyward.
Despite being 35 and coming off an injury-plagued 2023 season, he’s been one of the NFL’s best interior lineman. Still showing strength that makes him impossible to move, his bull rush has come back that allows him to collapse the pocket. He tied for second on the team with three sacks and could’ve had more had penalties not taken a few off the board. Per Pro Footfall Focus, he is their No. 1 interior defensive lineman overall and No. 1 against the run.
“Dominating. Also a great leader,” former NFL head coach Matt Patricia added.
Watt continues his dominant run as one of the NFL’s most impactful players. With a penchant for coming up clutch, like his forced fumble in the Steelers’ Monday win against the New York Giants, Belichick said the linebacker list revolves around him.
“Really think the conversation starts with T.J. Watt. T.J. does a tremendous job of pass rushing off the edge. But he’s also very good at knocking the ball off. He causes fumbles, he recovers fumbles, he’s got great awareness.”
Through the first eight games, Watt has 33 tackles (10 for a loss), 14 QB hits, 6.5 sacks, and a league-high four forced fumbles. Earlier in the year, he became the second-fastest player to ever reach the 100-sack club, needing just 109 games to get there. Only Reggie White was quicker.
“Smart. Tough. Good fundamentals. Dependable. This guy is a force to be reckon with,” Patricia said.
Former NFL GM Michael Lombardi said Watt primarily uses “one move” but is so effective that opposing tackles can’t stop it. Presumably, he’s referring to his dip-and-rip move around the edge. That’s an overgeneralization but it’s fair to say it’s his go-to in the game’s biggest moments.
Less time was spent on each individual specialist but Belichick noted that Boswell is having a “great year” for the Steelers. He enters the bye tied for the league-lead with 23 field goals and on pace to make 48 of them this year. That would shatter the NFL single-season record currently held by David Akers, who made 44 in 2011.
Killebrew was placed in the slot/wing position on Belichick’s punt team. While he serves as the personal protector on the Steelers’ unit, he’s capable of lining up anywhere and has played the wing before. Over the last four seasons, no one has been better at blocking punts than him. Killebrew doesn’t have one this season but has come close and demands double-teams and attention on the kick coverage unit.
Check out the whole list below.
