Sacks are missing, yet T.J. Watt, Bud Dupree get off to another strong start for Steelers

Playing with a tenacious pursuit of the quarterback reminiscent of the 2019 season, T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree were the two highest rated pass rushers in the NFL after the first week of the season.

Dupree ranked first with eight pressures, and Watt was right behind with seven, according to data compiled by Pro Football Focus.

Not bad considering none of those 15 combined pressures resulted in an actual sack for the Pittsburgh Steelers duo.

While inside linebacker Vince Williams, defensive end Stephon Tuitt and slot cornerback Mike Hilton brought down New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones once each in the Steelers’ 26-16 victory Monday night, Dupree and Watt were kept out of that column on the stat sheet.

It was the first time since Week 3 of last season against San Francisco that neither had a sack. It was an anomaly on a night when they pursued and harassed Jones for four quarters.

Although they didn’t take Jones to the ground, Watt and Dupree impacted the win in other areas. Watt dropped into coverage and intercepted Jones at the Giants 36 in the second quarter, setting up a touchdown that pulled the Steelers within 10-9.

Dupree got a piece of Jones’ arm in the third quarter, forcing a wobbly pass that Cameron Heyward intercepted in the end zone to end a 19-play drive for the Giants. The Steelers turned that interception into a Chris Boswell field goal that gave them a 19-10 lead early in the fourth quarter.

“It’s a great thing,” Watt said Friday. “We work so well together, and we’re just continuing to grow and push together. The great thing about the relationship between Bud and I is we’re just always trying to find ways to get better individually and collectively.”

That was apparent against the Giants. Dupree was credited with seven hurries and one hit on Jones, while also dropping Saquon Barkley twice behind the line of scrimmage as the Steelers held the star running back to 6 yards on 15 carries.

Watt was credited with five hurries and two hits while grading out as the best edge defender per Pro Football Focus. His grade was higher than all but one other defensive player in Week 1.

This week, Watt and Dupree will face Denver Broncos quarterback Drew Lock, who has been sacked just five times in six career NFL starts.

“T.J. Watt for sure is one of the best in the league,” Broncos pass rusher Bradley Chubb said. “Bud Dupree is an amazing rusher as well. I watched those guys in the offseason just going against certain tackles and stuff like that. I love those guys’ game. They play well together.”

Watt (14 1/2) and Dupree (11 1/2) combined for 26 sacks last season, trailing only Tampa Bay’s Shaq Barrett and Jason Pierre-Paul (28 combined sacks). They also had the most sacks by a Steelers duo since James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley combined for 27 1/2 in 2008.

“We’re an open book for each other,” Watt said. “We want to be the best possible duo we can be, not just for ourselves but most importantly for this team. We know if we are making a lot of splash plays, we’re helping the team win games.”

Watt and Dupree are trying to get the Steelers back in the playoffs after a two-year absence. This could be the last chance for Dupree, who is playing on the franchise tag and will become a free agent in 2021. The Steelers will have Watt for at least one additional season.

Because Watt and Dupree play with such high energy, defensive coordinator Keith Butler must bring them off the field on occasion to get a breather. Substituting backups, whether it was third-year pass rusher Ola Adeniyi or rookie Alex Highsmith, was particularly necessary Monday night considering it was the first game activity any player had experienced in nine months.

“They have to be in sync in terms of what we are trying to get out of our pass rush and stuff like that,” Butler said. “I think they’ve done a pretty good job of that. We would like to get a little more pressure than what we did the other night on third-and-long, but we are capable of doing that.”

Dupree played 58 of 68 total defensive snaps, and Watt logged 57. Adeniyi replaced Watt for 11 snaps and had a tackle for loss. Highsmith, in his NFL debut, got 10 snaps in place of Dupree. He also had a tackle.

“It’s awesome to learn from Bud and T.J.,” Highsmith said. “In my opinion, they are the best outside linebacker duo in the league.”