Due to injury, Pittsburgh Steelers EDGE T.J. Watt has pulled out of the Pro Bowl and will not participate in this year’s slate of mini-games or in the flag football game that will cap the weekend. Watt will be replaced by Baltimore Ravens EDGE Kyle Van Noy.
Van Noy is coming off a career-year at age 33, racking up 12.5 sacks to lead the Ravens.
Watt isn’t participating due to injuries he dealt with to close the 2024 season. He battled an ankle sprain and a thumb injury over the final few weeks that perhaps contributed to his quiet stretch. For the first time in his career, Watt went four-straight games without a sack and didn’t register on the stat sheet in the team’s Wild Card loss to the Baltimore Ravens.
Watt and wife Dani are also soon expecting their first child and perhaps that played a role in his decision not to attend the Pro Bowl.
Watt finished the 2024 season leading the Steelers with 11.5 sacks while leading the league with six forced fumbles. His sacks were his fewest in a non-injury shortened season since his rookie year. Still, he was regarded as a top run defender and came up clutch in key moments, including the Steelers’ Week 8 win over the New York Giants, recording a pair of sacks and a forced fumble.
Named to his seventh career Pro Bowl through eight NFL seasons, only a handful of Steelers have ever been named to more. That includes a list of Hall of Famers like Joe Greene, Jack Lambert, Troy Polamalu, and several others with busts in Canton. Watt is on track to join them as a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
In addition to the Pro Bowl selection, Watt was named second-team All-Pro. Those are likely to be his final accolades of the year with Watt no longer the favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year. Denver Broncos CB Patrick Surtain II passed him late in the season as the favorite. The league will announce the winner during NFL Honors in early February.
