Pittsburgh Steelers OLB T.J. Watt has the attention of opposing coaches every single week, and this week is no exception with Pittsburgh traveling to Las Vegas to take on the Raiders. Las Vegas head coach Antonio Pierce said his players need to know where Watt is, calling him the team’s “Waldo,” relating him to the character in the puzzle book series “Where’s Waldo.” Pierce said the Raiders need to have multiple hands and bodies on him.
“We need a lot of hands on him. Just find 90, that’s our Waldo, wherever 90 is man, get a couple hands on him, get a couple bodies. But I mean, a tremendous player, ultimate respect for his game and how he plays the game,” Pierce said in a 1-on-1 interview with the Raiders media team.
With Pittsburgh’s depth at outside linebacker thinning by the week due to injuries, Watt is sure to see a lot of attention from the Raiders on Sunday. Each week, teams try to take him away, but he almost always finds a way to make a play and positively impact the game for the Steelers. He’s coming off a 1.5-sack performance in Week 5 against the Dallas Cowboys, but Watt’s productivity slipped after Nick Herbig exited the game with an injury and the Cowboys were able to pay more attention to Watt.
Herbig, along with Alex Highsmith and DeMarvin Leal, are all out for Week 6, meaning it’ll be Jeremiah Moon likely starting across from Watt. The Steelers will also likely elevate one or both of Eku Leota or Adetokunbo Ogundeji from the practice squad, but Watt will be the focus of Las Vegas’ blocking scheme.
It’s going to be tough sledding with the amount of attention he’ll likely get from the Raiders, but if Watt can make an impact for the Steelers, it’ll be good news for a defense that’s struggled over the last two weeks.
Watt is looking to win his second AP Defensive Player of the Year award this season, and he’s off to an impressive start to the year with 20 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 6 tackles for a loss and a forced fumble. He had a sack in each of the first three games but didn’t have one in Week 4, so after bringing down Dak Prescott in Week 5, he’ll look to again start a sack streak against the Raiders. He’s also been a stout run defender once again this season.
Sunday will be a good test for Watt in a game where he should be getting a ton of attention from Las Vegas’ offense. We’ll see if Pittsburgh’s defense as a whole will be able to rebound after the last two weeks.
