T.J. Watt is one of the most dominant pass rushers in the NFL. He’s the Pittsburgh Steelers’ all-time sack leader, and considering their history on defense, that says a lot. If Watt walked away from the game today, he’d likely find himself inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame sooner rather than later. However, he’s not perfect. There are ways minimize his impact Watt. San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle recently explained how his team tried to limit Watt when it played Pittsburgh.
“There’s a couple d-linemen that are always fun to play against,” Kittle said recently on the Back of the Bus from Bussin’ with the Boys podcast. “J.J. Watt was really fun to play against when he was with the Cardinals a couple of times because he just talks the whole game. And then T.J. is fun too because we chipped on him every single play. We played them in Pittsburgh two years ago.
“We won the game, but we chipped him every play except for three plays, and on those three plays, he had three sacks. And we chipped him the whole game, and he’s so mad the whole game. He’s like, ‘Dude, leave me alone.’ I’m like, ‘Never.’ It’s like, ‘You’re mine, baby. You’re mine.’”
The Steelers played the 49ers to open the 2023 season, and it went exactly like Kittle said. Pittsburgh got crushed, losing 30-7. However, Watt had an excellent day, posting three sacks. He was one of the Steelers’ lone bright spots, but the 49ers tried to be as prepared for Watt as they could be.
At this point in his career, getting chipped or double-teamed isn’t anything new for Watt. It’s one of the only ways to slow him down. Otherwise, he wrecks the game.
That was on display multiple times last year. In Week 1, Watt looked like he couldn’t be blocked after the Atlanta Falcons left RT Kaleb McGary on an island against him for most of the game. McGary is a fine player, but being one-on-one with Watt isn’t ideal for most players.
Just as well, there were several instances last season where Watt was less effective. That was because of the attention teams threw his way. Watt was held without a sack over the last three weeks of the 2024 season, opposing offenses scheming him out of games.
That seemed to frustrate Watt, too. He sounds committed to finding a way to stop that from happening again, which could include him moving around the defense more.
Whatever the case, it’s clear that other teams are employing the same strategy that the 49ers used to limit Watt. Therefore, he and the Steelers need to find a counter. Watt is their best player, and they’re much more likely to win games when he’s impactful.
