As the Pittsburgh Steelers exit the voluntary portion of their offseason program and move into mandatory minicamp, all eyes will be on some of the players who were not at OTAs. Among those is T.J. Watt, who is entering the final year of his deal and due another big payday by the team. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the veteran OLB will not be attending mandatory minicamp.
According to the NFL’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA), players are subject to a $17,462 fine if they miss one day of mandatory minicamp, then a $34,925 fine if they miss a second day. If a player misses the third and final day, the fine is $52,381.
Many players have opted for a hold-in to avoid these fines while technically not participating, but Watt is reportedly not taking that approach this time around. This is different from his last offseason of negotiating a contract where he staged a hold-in until he finally signed his contract extension days before the season began.
With the Steelers paying Aaron Rodgers pennies on the dollar for a starting quarterback of his caliber, they have plenty of cash and cap space to work in an extension for Watt. The 2021 NFL Defensive Player of the Year has been one of the most game-changing players in football for the last six years and deserves to be rewarded.
Unfortunately for the Steelers, they waited too deep into the offseason and watched the market value of the position explode with Myles Garrett’s deal being worth $40 million per season. Given that Watt has outperformed Garrett in most statistical categories and the long-standing comparison between the two, it’s reasonable to assume Watt will want to break that $40 million per season mark and become the highest-paid defensive player in football.
The longer the Steelers wait the more difficult that could get with players like Micah Parsons, Trey Hendrickson and Aidan Hutchinson also due for new contracts. It’s impossible to speak to his motivation for skipping minicamp directly, but Watt is a new father this offseason and the $104,768 is chump change compared to the $28 million he is getting per season on his current deal.
They made him the highest-paid defensive player in the league once before. How long will it take for the Steelers to do it once again this offseason?
