Tag: T.J. Watt

T.J. Watt sets historic mark among Steelers pass rushers

T.J. Watt has done something no other Steelers pass rusher has ever done.

Some of the best pass rushers in the NFL have played for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Guys like Kevin Greene, Jason Gildon and James Harrison just to name a few. But none of them have been able to accomplish what T.J. Watt has done. The team announced on Monday, Watt is the first Steelers player to have multiple seasons of at least 13 sacks.

Watt matched his sack total from last season last night against the Buffalo Bills. Watt still has two games left and shows no signs of slowing down. There have only been six times Steelers player has had more than 13 sacks on the season and Watt has a great shot to catch James Harrison’s single-season record of 16.

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Steelers vs Week 14 Gut Reactions

My observations and reactions to the Pittsburgh Steelers week 14 win against the Arizona Cardinals.

Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

The Steelers took care of business against a competitive Arizona Cardinals team in week 14. The defense continued to roll holding their fifth straight opponent to 21 or fewer points. Devlin Hodges turned in an efficient performance and became the first rookie undrafted free-agent quarterback to win his first three starts. The Steelers have won seven of their last eight games and control their playoff destiny. Here are my gut reactions:

Beating the Odds

It was good to see the Steelers actually get to play with a lead. The offensive game plan was still conservative, Hodges finished with 16 completions and a touchdown on 19 attempts, but that was good enough for a win. Just as important as Hodges 152 passing yards was the fact that he didn’t turn the ball over.

Hodges’ contributions as a rusher shouldn’t be overlooked either. He scrambled five times for 34 yards and ironically outrushed counterpart Kyler Murray. Hodges an undrafted free agent beat the first overall draft pick at his own game, but his solid performance was overshadowed by Dionte Johnson’s breakout day.

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Steelers LB T.J. Watt named AFC Defensive Player of the Month

T.J. Watt had a huge November and the NFL recognized it.

It’s been a huge month for Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt. Heck, it’s been a huge season. But for November, Watt was truly elite and his efforts got him the AFC Defensive Player of the Month honors.

During the four games in November, Watt racked up 6.5 sacks, nine quarterback hits, forced a pair of fumbles and had 16 total tackles.

Watt has plenty of competition for the best defensive player in the league, some of them are on his own team. Watt’s huge season has been coupled with fellow outside linebacker Bud Dupree and safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. The three of them have been all-but unstoppable this season.

If Watt continues on his current pace, he will finish with 16.5 sacks for the season which would be a single-season Steelers record.

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Steelers LB T.J. Watt making a strong case for DPOY

Here’s a gallery of the best pics of Steelers LB T.J. Watt.

With only five games left to play, Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt is making a strong push to be a frontrunner for Defensive Player of the Year. In only his third season, Watt has ascended into the upper echelon of NFL defenders. One of his biggest challengers for the title might be teammate  Minkah Fitzpatrick.

Here are Watt’s current stats heading into the Steelers Week 13 matchup with the Cleveland Browns.

Tackles-37

Tackles for loss-10

Quarterback hits-25

Sacks-11.5

Passes defended-5

Forced fumbles-5

Fumbles recovered-3

Interceptions-1

If this isn’t a DPOY resume I don’t know what is. Check out our gallery of some of the best photos of Watt so far this season.

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Steelers have 2 of the top non-QB MVP candidates

The Steelers have multiple MVP candidates on their defense.

When pundits talk about MVP candidates, the headlines are always dominated by the quarterbacks. 2019 is no different as Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson leads the way. But there are several non-quarterbacks who deserve serious consideration and according to ESPN, some are on the Pittsburgh Steelers.

They ranked their five best non-quarterback MVP candidates and two of them are Steelers.

ESPN’s top candidate is outside linebacker T.J. Watt. Watt has been downright dominant this season with 10.5 sacks, nine tackles for loss, 33 total tackles, an interception and four forced fumbles. Watt simply takes over games for long stretches and makes the players around him better.

But he’s not the only Steeler who matches this description Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick has been remarkable since the Steelers traded for him after Week Two. Fitzpatrick slid into the free safety role for the Steelers and has become a turnover machine. He has five interceptions and six total takeaways in just eight games and has scored two defensive touchdowns.

We all recognize Watt and Fitzpatrick won’t be in any serious conversation for MVP with the top quarterbacks doing their thing. But of the two, which one would you consider a more viable candidate at this point?

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Steelers Week 10 gut reactions

The Pittsburgh Steelers found a way to win their fourth straight game.

It was ugly but the Pittsburgh Steelers managed to pull off their fourth straight win with a 17-12 victory over the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday. The game was hard to watch with the two teams combining for 24 penalties, six turnovers and displaying poor offenses. That being said, here are my gut reactions.

I mentioned the high amount of penalties already, but the offense was absolutely horrid. I’m going to come out and say it. People that are saying Mason Rudolph’s development is similar to Ben Roethlisberger his rookie season are wrong. Rudolph was essentially given the whole 2019 season to prove to the fans, coaches, ownership and his peers that he was the Steelers quarterback of the future, and if anything, there are more questions now about his future than in Week 2. When Roethlisberger was a rookie, he entered his first game in Week 2 at the Ravens and including the playoffs, the Steelers rattled off 15 straight wins on their way to losing the AFC championship game.

Looking back at that season, Roethlisberger was more limited in his pass attempts. Rudolph had 38 attempts Sunday and seems to be limited in effectiveness and productivity. Roethlisberger was assisted by an effective running game, something Rudolph has not been lucky enough to experience. The Steelers averaged 1.6 yards per rush, and the team’s longest run was 8 yards. Rudolph and Roethlisberger are alike in that both have been bolstered by dominate defenses while they attempt to get their footing as an NFL quarterback. Their on-field performances far from parallel one another.

Now that I’ve lashed out at Rudolph’s poor performance, I have to say there’s plenty of blame to go around. The Steelers as a team have not been consistent receivers for Rudolph. Drops are too common. He doesn’t have a run game to set him up in third-and-short situations on a regular basis and just to top things off, if the Steelers manage to move the ball, they usually end up off-setting their production with offensive penalties.

No running game, no receivers, and too many penalties are not the ideal situation for a young quarterback to flourish in. It’s a frustrating situation, which is only emphasized every week because of the defense’s stellar play. When Minkah Fitzpatrick is the Steelers’ best offensive weapon and he’s on defense, changes need to be made.

As bad as the offense has been, the defense continues to impress. They won the turnover battle for the eighth straight game and limited an inconsistent Rams offense to three points. Week 10 was so difficult to pallet, partially because the Steelers offense let the Rams score nine points while the defense held them to three. The defense consistently made big plays, tallying four sacks, four takeaways, three fumbles by the opposing quarterback and a defensive touchdown.

Fitzpatrick has been clutch and showcased rare awareness and ball skills. T.J. Watt entered the game as the highest-graded edge rusher in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus, one point above the Chicago Bears’ Khalil Mack. Watt tallied five tackles and two sacks against the Rams. Steve Nelson has been a shutdown corner across from Joe Haden, helping shut out Cooper Kupp on Sunday.

Just to top it off, defensive captain Cameron Heyward entered the day as the third-highest graded interior defensive lineman at PFF and was extremely disruptive. He had three tackles, a sack, two passes defended, and three of the Steelers’ nine quarterback hits. Even that impressive stat line doesn’t sum up just how dominant he was at the point of attack. With the Steelers winning four in a row, the NFL has to wonder just how good this defense truly is.

The Steelers leave the friendly confines of Heinz Field on a short week to play the Cleveland Browns on national TV Thursday night. The Browns got their third win of the year in Week 10 at home against a surging Buffalo Bills team. But their offensive line has been extremely shaky, which has forced Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield force the ball downfield under pressure. Mayfield is second in the NFL with 12 interceptions thrown. Don’t look now, but the Steelers are vying for an AFC wild-card spot.

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