James Harrison might not have rubber-stamped T.J. Watt to surpass his Pittsburgh Steelers’ career sack record. But from first impression, Harrison thought Watt had a chance to be something special. In a Sunday Countdown interview that aired Sunday morning, ESPN’s Hannah Storm interviewed Harrison and learned his initial takeaways after the Steelers drafted Watt in 2017.
“My first impression of T.J. I was like, ‘yo, like this dude could really be unbelievable,” Harrison told Storm. “He’s just getting better at what he does.”
Watt’s been that and then some. He surpassed Harrison’s career sack mark last season and became the second-fastest player in official NFL history to record 100 sacks. The only one quicker was the legendary Reggie White. Watt’s production to this point of his career is historic, and he already boasts a Hall of Fame resume despite just turning 30. He has six Pro Bowls, four All-Pros (and likely one more added after this year), and a Defensive Player of the Year Award.
Harrison and Watt took different paths to similar stardom. Harrison was the undrafted free agent, bouncing on and off the Steelers’ roster, who cut his teeth in NFL Europe and on special teams before becoming a dominant EDGE rusher. Watt was the high-prized first-round pick with J.J. Watt as his big brother, setting a high bar before T.J. ever took a snap in the league. Harrison beat the odds. Watt defied expectations.
“In Kansas City, it was one of those situations where we needed a big play, and they were like, ‘Deebo, get in there,” Watt said. “And I think within like three snaps [he got a sack]…I was like, that’s it. That’s the ‘It’ factor. That’s the clutch.”
Watt was referring to his rookie year when Harrison closed out a regular-season win against the Kansas City Chiefs. Despite seeing just a rotational role and 15 total snaps that day, Harrison took down quarterback Alex Smith for the game-clinching sack.
Watt has proven to be just as clutch. Few in the fourth quarter have been as impactful as him. Now, he’ll look to make more big-time plays in Sunday’s marquee matchups against the Baltimore Ravens.
