Last season was a tremendous year for Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt. In only his second season, Watt tied for eighth in the NFL with 13 sacks. He joined names like Chandler Jones, Frank Clark and Danielle Hunter among the league’s elite at getting to the quarterback.
But when Doug Farrar of Touchdown Wire put out his 11 best edge defenders, Watt didn’t make the cut. Who did make the list? Here’s how it broke down.
1. Khalil Mack, Chicago Bears
2. Calais Campbell, Jacksonville Jaguars
3. J.J. Watt, Houston Texans
4. Cameron Jordan, New Orleans Saints
5. Von Miller, Denver Broncos
6. Myles Garrett, Cleveland Browns
7. Melvin Ingram, Los Angeles Chargers
8. Yannick Ngakoue, Jacksonville Jaguars
9. Joey Bosa, Los Angeles Chargers
10. Demarcus Lawrence, Dallas Cowboys
11. Ryan Kerrigan, Washington Redskins
This would normally be the point when the Steelers fan in me would come out and I’d rage about how Watt had more sacks and pressures than half the guys on this list last season. Or we could mention his 68 total tackles, three passes defended and six forced fumbles. But I won’t.
This article is just another example of the media sort of forgetting the Steelers were really good last season. Let everyone keep sleeping on how good players like Watt are going to be this year.
