Friday, T.J. Watt declared himself able to play. The Pittsburgh Steelers’ last harm report mirrored that, displaying him with out a sport standing. The query turns into – how a lot will he play? Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, as a lot as he probably can.
“They’ll be monitoring him to guarantee that he’s okay,” Schefter stated on SportsCenter Sunday morning. “It’s a critical harm. He’s getting back from {a partially} collapsed lung, however he expects to be again in full now. We’ll see how that works out as soon as he’s on the market. Sport circumstances, if the stamina is strictly the identical, getting back from a lung harm.
“However I can inform you that TJ Watt is planning to be a full go tonight and the Pittsburgh Steelers are very pleased to have him again.”
Most have anticipated Watt to be on a pitch depend tonight. However in a must-win sport and with adrenaline serving to, a competitor like Watt will doubtless attempt to push as laborious as he can. Whereas his harm was uncommon and critical, the profit is his physique is in good well being. Unlucky because the scenario is, in a method, he bought further relaxation that ought to have him feeling recent for tonight. Listening to “again in full” from Schefter is encouraging.
In his first sport again from {a partially} torn pec in 2022, Watt performed 78 p.c of the snaps. That seems like a superb benchmark for him to hit towards Baltimore. Pittsburgh will likely be extra prepared to rotate given the energy of their outdoors linebacker group. Although quiet recently, Nick Herbig has the teaching employees’s belief and rookie Jack Sawyer has solely grown over the course of the season.
Earlier than his lung surgical procedure, Watt had averaged about 82 p.c of the defensive snaps this season.
Watt’s run protection will likely be simply as necessary as his cross rush. Even in a down 12 months with seven sacks throughout 13 video games, he stays the most effective edge-setting linebackers in soccer. Baltimore should cease the run and Pittsburgh should cease it. Whichever aspect wins within the trenches could have an actual benefit. And Watt intends to be on the market for each snap attainable.
