True to his word, T.J. Watt makes full practice debut with Steelers

The wait for T.J. Watt to practice with his Pittsburgh Steelers teammates finally ended Wednesday.

The veteran outside linebacker, whose previous on-field work since training camp opened was limited to individual drills while negotiations continue on a long-term contract extension, took part in his first full practice as the Steelers resumed on-field preparation for the season opener Sunday at Buffalo.

“I thought he looked good,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “He was engaged. He has been a full participant in walk-throughs and things of that nature. He can learn from watching others, and it’s evident in watching him work today.”

The Steelers have two more practices scheduled before they open the season against Buffalo in Orchard Park, N.Y. Tomlin said Watt’s participation will be similar to what it was Wednesday.

“We are going to continue to push forward and prepare for this game,” he said. “I don’t have anything unique scheduled for him, no.”

For the second day in a row, Tomlin was asked whether he expects Watt to play in the opener despite the linebacker’s limited practice time.

“Like I said yesterday, I’m proceeding with that assumption,” he said.

Watt wasn’t made available to the media. Inside linebacker Joe Schobert, acquired during training camp from Jacksonville, said it was “good” to get his first taste of lining up next to Watt on the Steelers defense.

Schobert also was Watt’s teammate in college at Wisconsin.

“T.J. is a professional,” Schobert said. “I train with him in the offseason sometimes back in Waukesha. He takes his job very seriously. No matter what, no matter where you want to play, you could put him in a parking lot, whatever, he’s going to be ready to play a football game.”

Rookie center Kendrick Green also got his first taste of Watt. He offered the perspective of lining up on the other side of the formation from the two-time first-team All-Pro selection.

“You just kind of feel his presence a little bit more,” Green said. “He plays hard.”

For the first time in five years, Watt will have to get acclimated with a new pass-rushing partner. Until he was injured in December, Bud Dupree shared the field with Watt, forming one of the NFL’s top pass-rushing duos in recent years.

Second-year linebacker Alex Highsmith moved into the starting role after Dupree signed with the Tennessee Titans in free agency, and the Steelers added veteran pass rusher Melvin Ingram III on the eve of training camp.

Tomlin doesn’t expect chemistry to be an issue for Watt and either Highsmith or Ingram.

“I’m not concerned about that at all,” he said. “One guy plays on the left, the other guys plays on the right. If they are both doing a really good job, they meet at the quarterback.”

Tomlin also downplayed Watt not being elected one of the Steelers’ three captains. Watt was among five players honored with a captaincy in 2020.

“Those guys vote, and their votes speak,” he said. “I’m not interested in interpreting it. I just report the news.”