Pittsburgh Steelers: 5 players who stood out in dominate win over Panthers

T.J. Watt

T.J. Watt is an animal. He has been a great addition to the Steelers desire to rush the quarterback. After a great rookie campaign, he is avoiding the sophomore slump with a fantastic second year.

Watt recorded only one sack on the night, which was a strip sack (shown above) where he annihilated Cam Newton. The more impactful play he made in the game was the first play of Carolina’s second possession.

After a Carolina special teams penalty had the Panthers starting deep in their own territory, they ran a naked bootleg, but Watt came in unblocked and his speed had Cam Newton trapped in the end zone. Newton threw it up out of desperation to avoid a safety, Vince Williams snagged the pass out of the air and rain it in for a touchdown.

This was the play that swung the game heavily in Pittsburgh’s favor and it never swung back. Watt was in the backfield all night as a part of the Steelers’ relentless pass rush.

There was another guy who deserves credit for that too…