What started as extension talks has now snowballed into a full-blown holdout. Missing the voluntary OTAs was one thing. That was ‘voluntary’ to begin with. But now, the Steelers’ veteran LB T.J. Watt has upped the stakes. The team faces the minicamp with a new QB eager to get in sync with the team. In this scenario, even one missing piece from the roster can be a significant setback for the team moving forward. However, with Watt now skipping the mandatory minicamps, fans have begun to wonder what it means for his future in Steel City. And as for HC Mike Tomlin, he’s still holding his cards close and only dropping little hints.

Back in 2021, T.J. Watt had a long “hold in” before he got his 4-year $112 million contract. He attended the camps, but didn’t practise. And he only got the deal before the regular season kicked off. With that contract, he also became the highest-paid defensive player in the league for a while. But that was four years ago, and the market has ballooned since then for all positions. Myles Garrett now holds that throne with a whopping $40 million a year. And TJ Watt wants a similar, if not the same, deal for himself.

As per a post on X by UnderdogNFL, Mike Tomlin has addressed the T.J. Watt situation, but a clear solution doesn’t seem to be on the horizon quite yet. As Mike Tomlin puts it, “We’d like him to be here, but certainly not surprised by where we are. We’ve expressed a desire to get the business done, he has as well, and so we’ll continue to work. We’ve been here before.” As Mike Tomlin put it, the Steelers had seen T.J. Watt’s absence from camp coming for a while now. Watt has certainly made it clear that he wants a new and bigger deal. But as the Steelers front office “continue to work” on the contract situation, what does it mean for a team facing the minicamp without one of their linebackers?

While Mike Tomlin has not confirmed how far along the negotiations are with T.J. Watt, could it be a repeat of 2021? The Steelers’ DC Teryl Austin, for one, isn’t getting swept by the contract tides. As Austin put it, “We don’t get caught up [in that] – He’s going to be in good shape.” But as analysts and insiders now believe, T.J. Watt’s take on the situation is much fiercer than it was four years ago. As Mike Garafolo had reported, “TJ Watt’s serious about showing the team that he is serious about this contract extension that he has not gotten to this point. We have seen pass rushers, including Myles Garrett, his fellow pass rusher in the AFC North, paid this off season. TJ Wants his pay at this point. Has not gotten it and is willing to be fined to prove a point right now.”

With all fingers pointing the blame at Mike Tomlin, it will be interesting to see what the front office does at this point. And it’s not just the analysts who are making his case right now. Even TJ Watt’s brother, JJ Watt, had recently shared his take on the whole contract situation with the Steelers.

JJ Watt speaks up on TJ Watt’s contract

With the NFL payout market growing larger every year, it is natural for players on old contracts to ask for bigger deals when they have proven themselves to be a valuable asset to the team. And as for TJ Watt, his brother has already made a very strong case in his favor recently. As JJ Watt put it, “I’ve been a big believer that ownership and front offices obviously treat this like a business, but they do not like it when the players flip the script on them and treat it like a business back.” JJ Watt’s solution? Pay up before tensions start to rip at the seams of your team.

As JJ Watt believes, it is much easier to retain a player when he’s already working in your system. If you wait for the time his contract is almost up, the deal is only going to get bigger. As JJ Watt put it, “Taking care of your guys earlier does a few things for you. Number one, it gets them locked in at a lower price in the long run. – Number two, you’re keeping them happy. – If you take care of things early, especially when players want to take care of things earlier, and say that they’ll take less money to take care of things earlier because it sets themselves up long-term financially, do that.” The longer the Steelers wait to give him a new contract, the more difficult it will be for the whole team to get in sync with the full roster.

With TJ Watt missing the mandatory minicamps, his dissatisfaction with the franchise is clear. This time around, he’s not even on the field watching the other guys play. He’s back home, waiting for a call that will bring him the deal he wants. And many around the league are confident that a deal will be finalized soon enough. But will the Steelers make him one of the highest-paid defenders in the league again? That’s something we’ll only know once the new dotted line has been signed.