T.J. Watt says official admitted to screwing up critical call in Steelers Week 1 game

The Pittsburgh Steelers emerged victorious in their Week 1 road game against the Atlanta Falcons. However, that's no thanks to Brad Rogers and his officiating crew. Throughout the game, the Steelers were on the losing end of some head-scratching calls by the referees.

It started with an egregious offensive pass interference call against George Pickens that wiped away a would-be scoring drive by the Steelers in the second quarter. However, the worst all of the game came just a handful of plays later.

As the Falcons were looking to put points on the board before the half, T.J. Watt had an explosive rush off the edge that resulted in a strip-sack. Unfortunately, Watt was called for jumping offsides, and the play was reversed. Thanks to the penalty, the Falcons scored a touchdown just before halftime.

Upon replay it was clear that Watt timed the snap perfectly -- which explains why the All-Pro pass rusher and former Defensive Player of the Year was livid when he went to the sideline after the play.

But video proof isn't the only evidence we have that the officals made the wrong call.

After the game, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo caught up with Watt who claimed the referee admitted to Watt that he blew the call on Watt's strip-sack. Garafolo empathized with Watt, expressing that it has to be one of the worst feelings to look up and see a flag after a play like that.

Watt gave us a response we didn't expect.

"Yeah, especially when the official says he messed it up, after the first half, he went in and saw it," Watt explained after the game.

T.J. Watt was robbed of elite Week 1 production

Surprisingly, this wasn't Watt's only strip-sack that was wiped off the board in Week 1. In the second half, Watt had another sack and forced fumble reversed as cornerback Donte Jackson was called for illegal hands to the face.

Thankfully, the missed call didn't change the outcome of the game, but robbing T.J. Watt of a sack and forced fumble could prove costly when it comes to Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2024. Watt fell just short of earning his second DPOY honors last season. In a race so tight, every statistic matters.

At the end of the day, Watt was still able to get his revenge. Despite not getting credit for what would have been two of the biggest defensive plays of the game, the superstar edge rusher still wound up with a sack, a fumble recovery, two tackles for a loss, three quarterback hits, and a handful of pressures.

Watt begins the 2024 season at 29 years old and he turns 30 in November. Fortunately, age is but a number when it comes to one of the best defensive players in the NFL. Watt looks as good as ever, and even with the officials working against him in Week 1 against the Falcons, he was still able to make a remarkable impact in the win.