There has been a ton of buzz around the Pittsburgh Steelers bringing together 2 of the 3 Watt brothers currently playing in the NFL.
While JJ Watt being disgruntled with the Texans and their lack of success may make him a more realistic option, it is worth comparing the two best players on the Houston Texans’ roster, J.J. Watt and Deshaun Watson, to really decide who would offer the most to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A look at J.J. Watt
Looking at Watt, he is a 5-time All-Pro, and 2 time defensive player of the year. He has led the league in sacks twice and can boast two more seasons in the top 3 in the league in sacks, per ProFootballReference. He is without a doubt a first-ballot hall of famer and will go down as one of the most dominant defensive linemen in NFL history.
Unfortunately for Watt, he hasn’t been able to stay on the field as much the last few seasons. Since 2016 he has only managed to appear in 32 out of 64 possible regular-season games. With him aging, it might not be worth it for the Steelers to struggle to maintain the roster they have now while trying to afford another massive contract for a player who is still great when he is on the field but can’t seem to stay on it consistently.
There is no doubt he would make the defense better. Especially considering he has been showing success on the interior a lot this season. Furthermore, the Steelers could afford to use him as a rotational piece with the talent on the defensive line, thus lowering his chance of injury.
A look at Deshaun Watson
Deshaun Watson would be my personal pick here. While the odds of the Steelers somehow getting him instead of Watt are pretty much zero, he would be my guy if we could snap our fingers and just make him appear on the Steelers roster.
Watson hasn’t had much opportunity for success on a roster with an atrocious offensive line, a lack of a running attack, or a stable of wide receivers nearly as good as the Pittsburgh Steelers currently boast. They added Brandin Cooks and Randall Cobb alongside Kenny Stills, Will Fuller, and Keke Coutee. But they dealt, possibly the best wide receiver in the league, and Watson’s only reliable weapon for his career, to Arizona.
People forget Deshaun Watson has the most touchdown passes thrown in a 7 game span by any NFL quarterback ever. This was in his rookie season that was tragically cut short by an injury in practice. Furthermore, he is the only QB in NFL history to throw for over 400 yards, throw 4 touchdowns, and run for over 50 yards in the same game. Per Sports Illustrated, He is the first quarterback in NFL history to throw for over 9,000 yards, and rush for over 1,000 yards in his first 36 games.
While the Steelers currently have Ben Roethlisberger on their roster, every offseason begs the same questions. Will Ben be back? If he comes back, will he be able to take it all the way? Deshaun Watson is currently a better quarterback than Ben Roethlisberger. Watson would be the quarterback of the future and would easily put the Black and Gold into a position to remain in Super Bowl contention for the next 5 years.
JJ Watt is the more realistic option with it being the twilight of his legendary career. I would love to see him in a Pittsburgh Steelers uniform. But every week I ask myself the same question, “Which opposing player would I like to see play for the Pittsburgh Steelers the most?”, and this week it is Deshaun Watson.