Jason Mackey: Can T.J. Watt pair his big payday with playoff success?

Jason Mackey, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Jul 17, 2025

Published in Football

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PITTSBURGH — The last time T.J. Watt gave us something to talk about via Instagram, the Steelers edge rusher was flashing a peace sign. On Thursday, Watt reappeared with an image of him screaming and flexing, as news of his record new deal broke.

Perhaps Watt will explain that he got hooked on the Grateful Dead over the summer. He certainly won’t be peacing out of Pittsburgh.

If anything, general manager Omar Khan literally bought some peace next week when the Steelers report for training camp at Saint Vincent College by signing Watt to a new four-year, $144 million deal.

That, though, isn’t the biggest piece of this discussion for me.

More than anything, it’s time for Watt and his teammates to perform better in the postseason, to justify that contract and snap the Steelers’ eight-year playoff victory drought.

That inconvenient statistic has played a part in a seesaw of an offseason with Watt, one that was resolved sooner than a lot of us probably expected.

His argument: You’re 1-10 without me, I should’ve been the NFL Defensive Player of the Year twice, and I’m the best pass-rusher of my generation.

Theirs: How many playoffs wins do we have with you again?

OK, it probably didn’t go down just like that.

The Steelers and Watt have maintained all along this is the outcome they wanted, for Watt to remain a one-helmet guy. Given Watt’s 108 sacks, four All-Pros and seven Pro Bowls, I’m sure as hell not about to argue against having him on the team.

But there was a right way and a wrong way to go about this, and I think the two sides actually did a good job striking a balance.

Watt got $108 million guaranteed and an average annual value that puts him right alongside Cleveland’s Myles Garrett. I personally think that’s a silly thing to chase, out Browning the Browns, but the guarantees ending after 2027 make it far more palatable.

Who knows what the Steelers could need to spend on at that point? If Watt ages gracefully, great. Easy decision to pay a productive, first-ballot Hall of Famer. But I didn’t like the idea of the Steelers acquiescing and stretching too far because Watt’s popular and they felt like they had to.

The end result was smart business.

For both sides.

Now, the focus should shift to the other stuff.

To Watt not only winning big games, but playing better in them, another inconvenient truth that has been at least partially responsible for the Steelers’ extended playoff drought — Mitch Trubisky, Kenny Pickett and failing to solve the quarterback situation, also significant.

But Watt’s legacy in Pittsburgh matters far beyond the splendid production and now a third contract. Does he want to be remembered as someone who compiled stats and dollars, or a player who won meaningful games?

Both, I’d imagine.

The next challenge will be harder than the one the Steelers completed — especially as it pertains to Watt staying healthy and producing late in seasons, which obviously didn’t happen in 2025.

A left ankle injury dogged Watt, as he closed the year with 193 consecutive snaps without registering a defensive stat. He didn’t look like himself.

It was hard to process for someone who had 19 sacks in 2023, and who two years prior tied the NFL record with 22.5 sacks, earning DPOY honors. I don’t think Watt suddenly turned into a pumpkin, but he’s also 30 years old and has plenty of miles on the tires.

The Steelers and Watt also have to do a better job moving him around the formation, away from double teams and into positions where he has cleaner rush lanes.

That’s down the road. For now, I’m glad there was at least some common sense baked into this deal.

Sure, making Watt the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history represents a huge commitment. But if you look at the AAV as a percentage of the salary cap — which obviously continues to increase — it’s really not much different than Watt’s last deal.

My concern was the years they’d potentially guarantee a player in his mid-30s, as other expenses are inevitable.

The Steelers are incomplete at receiver. They’ll hopefully have linemen and Joey Porter Jr. requiring second contracts, other secondary needs and a decent amount of depth on the edge.

Doesn’t I mean would’ve been aggressively shopping Watt — breaking news: he’s talented, productive and means a ton here — but it should have kept the Steelers from doing anything stupid. I believe that happened by keeping the guaranteed years reasonable.

This was another example of Khan navigating the art of a deal and getting creative, the kinds of moves that have defined his tenure thus far. Unfortunately for the Steelers, their recent history also includes too many instances of coming up short when it matters most, a bugaboo that has trailed Watt his entire career.

It’s time for that to change.