Covid indirectly benefits T.J. Watt, who after week of rest has big game for Steelers

When T.J. Watt took the podium in a curtained-off area tucked adjacent to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Heinz Field locker room, he let out a long, tired sigh as he slumped into his chair.

When his media session ended 5 minutes later, Watt let out another fatigued groan as he pushed his body up from his seat.

“Absolutely exhausting is how it felt,” Watt said of the three-hour game that had just ended with a 20-19 Steelers victory against the Baltimore Ravens. “Absolutely out of breath at the end.”

Watt deserved some rest after his week — and after squeezing out of his body 3¹⁄₂ sacks, six quarterback hits, a forced fumble and an effort that altered the pass that ultimately decided the game.

T.J. Watt racks up another sack! 13.5 on the season. #HereWeGo

????: #BALvsPIT on CBS
????: NFL app pic.twitter.com/KP0nb80xbO

— NFL (@NFL) December 5, 2021

Not bad for a guy who six days prior had tested positive for covid-19 and then didn’t practice or see his teammates all week.

“If I could do it all over again, I’d practice,” said Watt, whose stint on the covid list lasted five days before his activation Saturday morning. “I am sick of running around in my backyard. I’m sure my neighbors think I was crazy this week. But glad I was able to play this week. That was the goal, and glad we were able to get a win.”

Watt said he experienced only mild symptoms associated with covid-19 and that his positive test was the routine weekly one required of vaccinated players in 2021. He dialed into defensive meetings all week over Zoom, and his workout regimen was limited to the stationary bike and half-acre lot he has at his home.

“I put the cleats on and … was running around trees and corny stuff,” Watt said. “But I had to do what I had to do.”

All Watt had to do, per NFL covid protocols, to play Sunday was produce negative covid tests on consecutive days in addition to being symptom-free for 48 hours. But while that made him eligible to play, it didn’t assure he’d be at his best.

“Great player,” Ravens coach John Harbaugh said. “We probably expected him to find a way to get back.”

While the effects of covid on some athletes have left them sluggish, Watt actually said he ended up benefiting from it because it gave his body a week off from practice. Watt has missed two full games and more than a half of two others this season because of injuries to his groin, hip and knee. The latter two of those just caused him to miss a game. Although Watt had returned for the prior week’s game at Cincinnati, he tacitly made it clear he wasn’t 100%.

“My body needed rest (this past week) more than anything for my knee and my hip,” Watt said, “and I truly think (the covid-forced practice break) helped me a lot.”

Watt had the Steelers’ first individual game of at least 3¹⁄₂ sacks since James Harrison — also against the Ravens — Nov. 5, 2007. Watt had half the Steelers’ season-high seven sacks.

He moved into the NFL lead with 16 sacks in only 10 games this season. Watt’s first sack Sunday allowed him to join Hall of Famer Reggie White as the only NFL players since 1982 (when the sack became an official statistic) to have at least 13 in four consecutive seasons.

The two-point attempt is NO GOOD. #BALvsPIT pic.twitter.com/tl74jaHz9x

— NFL (@NFL) December 6, 2021

Watt did not sack Lamar Jackson on the final meaningful play of Sunday’s game. But Jackson said Watt was why he wasn’t able to make an accurate throw to Ravens tight end Mark Andrews.

“I couldn’t do that just because T.J. Watt’s got range,” Jackson said. “He’s a long guy. I had to throw around him and try to make something happen.”

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