J.J. Watt isn’t playing doctor nor is he offering an ironclad prediction on younger brother T.J. Watt’s status for Saturday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens. But like all other reports, he offered an optimistic prognosis with kickoff now just a couple days away.
“We’ve got a low-ankle sprain there. X-ray’s negative,” J.J. Watt said Wednesday during his weekly appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. “It’s one of those things that you just roll it really hard and it’s very painful. Very tough to utilize because you’re a pass rusher on the edge, turning the corner on that ankle, specifically putting an insane amount of pressure into it.
“So when you add that with the fact that they’re playing the three games in 11 days or whatever, it is very difficult. But he is walking around better and feeling better than I think you would initially think the next day.”
Watt suffered an ankle sprain in the second half of the Steelers’ loss to the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday. Initially appearing to be in plenty of pain, he ended up with the best-case scenario of a low-ankle sprain. No broken bones or the dreaded high-ankle sprain that could’ve knocked him out for the rest of the regular season.
Speaking to reporters Monday, Mike Tomlin said he was optimistic about Watt’s status for Saturday. And Hard Knocks showed Watt walking to the bus seemingly with little issue following the Eagles game. A Wednesday ESPN report also suggested Watt will play against the Ravens.
Held out of Tuesday’s walkthrough, the team will hold its first “real” practice Wednesday where Watt’s status will be updated. It’s safe to assume the team will be cautious with him, and he’s on the short list of players who need little-to-zero practice reps and still be able to play in the game. It helps that Pittsburgh is familiar with Baltimore and just played the Ravens in Week 11.
As J.J. Watt noted, the complicating factor is the Steelers’ tight schedule. Six days from Philadelphia to Baltimore followed by four days until the team hosts Kansas City. It’s rushing the timeline for Watt and others, like WR George Pickens and SS DeShon Elliott. Both players missed last weekend with hamstring injuries.
Given Watt’s toughness and the magnitude of the game, J.J. Watt expects T.J. to do everything he can to dress in Baltimore.
“I know him. I know he’s a competitor. I know he is gonna wanna be out there. I know he is gonna do everything it takes to be out there. So we’re gonna see what happens.”
Without Watt, the Steelers don’t win. And they need to beat the Baltimore Ravens to sew up the division. If not, it’ll be a wide-open battle down the stretch where any additional stumbles could give the Ravens first place. Even if the Steelers’ plan means using Watt in a reduced role, 35 snaps of him are better than none. And Pittsburgh has built up the EDGE depth to handle having him at less than 100 percent in health or in snap count.
