Steelers LB TJ Watt leaves Vikings game with injury
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt suffered a groin injury in the Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Minnesota Vikings game on Thursday Night Football and has been officially ruled out of the game, according to Field Yates of ESPN. He will not return.
Watt has been dominating this season and playing like the best defensive player in football. In his last game, he racked up six tackles, 3.5 sacks and three tackles for loss, earning AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
The Steelers are currently getting trounced by the Vikings 26-0 in Thursday Night Football and losing Watt certainly doesn’t help things at all.
Obviously, if Watt has to miss a lot of time, it’s a massive blow to the Steelers’ defense as he’s the best defensive player in the National Football League.
Thus far, he’s put up monster numbers. He recently tied James Harrison for the most sacks in a single season in Steelers history with 16. Oh yeah, and he also didn’t play in two games this season due to injuries.
T.J. Watt’s Mega-Deal
In the off-season, Watt signed a four-year contract extension worth more than $112 million, with $80 million guaranteed at signing, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
The deal made him the highest-paid defensive player in football in terms of guaranteed money. Watt will bring in $28.3 million on average annually. He’s proven time and time again, that he’s worth every penny.
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The Steelers were involved in intense contract negotiations with Watt for much of the summer.
Simply, the best in the game today
No matter what defensive stats you look at, you’re likely to find Watt at or near the very top of all defenders in the National Football League.
It’ll be interesting to see if Watt has a better career than his older brother, J.J. Watt.
For now, the Steelers would just like their star defender to get healthy. Pittsburgh faces the Tennessee Titans next on Dec. 19. Kickoff for that game is slated for 1:00 p.m. EST.