The Pittsburgh Steelers' defense can’t wait to get T.J. Watt back in the lineup after he returned to practice ahead of the Week 17 matchup with the Cleveland Browns. Watt, of course, was inactive in Cleveland, though he did travel with the team.
During the first half, Steelers fans got a much-needed update on when Watt will return to the field, courtesy of CBS sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson.
“We had a chance to speak with Mike Tomlin, and he told us he had no intentions of playing him today. Tomlin said he will not play until he has a full week of full participation, he said, because Watt is coming back from a medical procedure and not from an injury, he needs to be a full participant all week leading up to the game,” Wolfson reported in the second quarter.
Pittsburgh Steelers fans finally have a benchmark for when to expect T.J. Watt back
Watt was limited in practice all week leading up to the Browns game, so Steelers fans are holding out hope that Watt can log a full week of practice next week so he’ll be available against the Baltimore Ravens in the season finale. Of course, the outcome of Sunday’s game against Cleveland plays a part in Watt’s return. If Pittsburgh wins, Watt could be afforded another week of rest with the AFC North wrapped up.
Watt is two weeks removed from having surgery to repair a collapsed lung after a dry-needling treatment session at the team’s facility. It hasn’t been Watt’s strongest season, as he has just seven sacks in 13 games this season. If Watt doesn’t return in the regular season or record another sack, he’ll finish with his lowest sack total in a season in which he played more than 10 games since his rookie campaign.
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Luckily for Pittsburgh, the team has performed much better without Watt than it has throughout his career in the past couple of weeks. Before Watt’s lung injury, the Steelers were 1-10 without Watt in the lineup. But, they’ve won the past two games without him, thanks to players like Alex Highsmith, Nick Herbig, and Jack Sawyer stepping up in his absence.
At the very least, Steelers fans can take some comfort in the fact that Watt should be closer to 100% for the postseason so long as the team handles its business in the final two weeks to win the AFC North. There’s no denying that Pittsburgh needs its top defender on the field, even if he is having one of the least productive seasons of his career.