Skipping mandatory minicamp in the midst of wanting a new contract was a bit of a surprising move from Pittsburgh Steelers star outside linebacker T.J. Watt, but certainly an understandable one.
The last time he was in a contract negotiation, Watt didn’t miss any time, though he stayed off to the side putting in individual work during minicamp and training camp ahead of the 2021 season. Now he’s trying a new tactic, and that’s not showing up, conducting a holdout as he negotiates for a fair contract.
That led to quite a bit of talk Tuesday on Day 1 of Steelers mandatory minicamp at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on the South Side. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin addressed Watt’s absence and added — most importantly — that both sides want to get a deal done.
But with Watt holding out, former NFL GM Doug Whaley senses some hurt feelings on Watt’s side, and some surprise on the Steelers’ side as well, though the Steelers are largely the ones at fault for creating this situation. That said, despite the hurt feelings, Whaley — who appeared on 93.7 The Fan’s Morning Show Wednesday — stated that he expects a deal to get done, and that neither side should take anything personally in the negotiations.
“Those hurt feelings will get cured real quickly when they meet the number that he’s requesting. I know it’s a different way to go about it, but if I was Omar [Khan], I wouldn’t be upset about it. I wouldn’t read too much into it,” Whaley said of the Watt contract situation, according to audio via 93.7 The Fan. “He’s going about it a different way. That’s fine in the end, as long as everybody has that same narrative to say we want to get this thing done. And there’s a feeling it will get done, and it will be. The Steelers are notorious for taking their time and being deliberate with these things.
“T.J. knows that that’s how they do business. Is he trying to exert some extra pressure or the pressure that he can on the organization? Yes, and that’s his right. But in the end, when you’re in this business, you take the personal feelings out of it and know it’s just business.”
Watt might be frustrated with the way the Steelers do business, and that’s certainly his right as Whaley stated. His older brother, J.J, has stated multiple times that teams should be willing to take care of their best players before they get to the final year of contracts, which T.J. is entering.
There’s the belief that everything will get done in the end the way it’s supposed to be, and Watt will be one of the league’s highest-paid defensive players, as he should be considering how dominant he is. But the process to get there can be long and frustrating.
Heck, Watt’s process last time was so frustrating for him that he barged into Art Rooney II’s office in September of that year to get the deal done himself, rather than trying to get every last cent possible. Could that happen this time around? Possibly, but Watt seemingly isn’t thrilled with the way things are going, leading to him missing minicamp.
With him missing mandatory minicamp, Watt has opened himself up to the possibility of being fined by the team for each day, which could total more than $100,000. For Watt, that could be worth it, and those fines could be wiped out in the negotiation process in the end.
“I would not [fine Watt], and especially if we’re the reasons why he’s holding out and we’re just dragging our feet. But in my opinion, you set the market by saying he is a one-helmet guy, he’s gonna be a Steeler for life. So just get the deal done,” Whaley said of Watt and the contract. “We know, I mean, he is the best player at his position for a long time. You can argue that Myles Garrett, [Micah] Parsons are better, whatever. He’s in the conversation, and I’m done saying this person in sports is the best. My question now is, is he in the conversation? Because you can nitpick and say this and that he’s in the conversation and no one can say he’s not as one of the best defensive players in the league now, but also one of the best defensive players of the Steelers organization ever.
“So just get it done.”
Ultimately, that deal between Watt and the Steelers will get done. The only question is when it gets done, and what it looks like. Hopefully that’s sooner rather than later, because the Steelers need Watt on the field to be at their best.
