T.J. Watt continues to hold-in with season looming

T.J. Watt has shown no signs of an end to his hold-in. The Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker carried on his preseason camp routine on Monday at the team’s practice. During training camp, he participated in meetings and conditioning but did not participate in drills, spending team periods conditioning on the sideline.

That was the case Monday, even with the Steelers season opener quickly approaching. Pittsburgh kicks off the season Sunday at 1 p.m. on the road at Buffalo. A first-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, Watt is entering the option year of his rookie contract. If he does not work out a deal, he will hit free agency or get franchise tagged in March. 

“We’d like to get T.J.’s deal done, if we can, before the start of the season,” Steelers owner Art Rooney said near the start of training camp. “That’s the goal. I don’t like to get into those details in terms of the discussions, but we’re going to try to get it done by the start of the season if we can. I try not to get optimistic or pessimistic. I’ve seen these things go so many different ways over the years.”

Pittsburgh released its unofficial depth chart for Week 1 last week, where Watt was listed as the Steelers starting left linebacker. He is expected to be the defensive play-caller, too.

What signing T.J. Watt would mean for Pittsburgh 

Watt has proven on the field he deserves a new contract. He has been selected first-team All-Pro in both seasons. And he has totaled 29.5 sacks, 77 hits on the quarterback, 15 passes defended, 10 forced fumbles and 23 tackles for loss. 

He was also third in Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2019 and second in 2020. Watt is the pillar of the Pittsburgh defense and is a dominant force. The Steelers have ranked in the top-five in both points and yards allowed in Watt’s two seasons with the franchise. 

But while Pittsburgh waits on a decision from Watt, Tomlin is trying to not think about how long the hold-in could go. 

“I’m not into the hypotheticals,” Tomlin said in August. “You know, we’ll deal with today, and then we’ll deal with tomorrow, tomorrow. You can talk all day about hypotheticals relative to that issue and others.”

“The business end is going to run its course. T.J. is highly conditioned; our strength staff is working with him; he’s getting in good workdays, and the process is running its course. In the meanwhile, I’m focused on the guys who are working and their level of productivity and what type of days they’ve been having.”

While Watt waits on a new contract, Melvin Ingram has seen more time in the rotation. Pittsburgh listed Devin Bush (LILB), Joe Schobert (RILB), Alex Highsmith (ROLB) as the other starters next to the left outside linebacker.

Steelers familiar with situation 

Watt is not the first Pittsburgh defensive player to hold out before the regular season. 

“Not unique at all really,” Tomlin said. “You know, that negotiation process is going to run its course. Some run their courses faster than others. If I remember correctly, Cam Heyward had less than 100% participation when he was in a similar circumstance a short time ago.”

Heyward inked a four-year extension on the eve of the regular season last fall. The extension, worth $65.6 millions, was signed just in time for the first game week of the season. 

T.J. Watt is now in the same exact position as Heyward. He did not risk injury before a contract extension. And now he could ink a deal on the eve of Pittsburgh’s season opener.