TJ Watt on the pressure to live up to his mega-deal: this is what I was made for

The Steelers pass rusher TJ Watt detained during training camp. He trained with his teammates for the first time this season on Wednesday, a day before signing a four-year extension.

Watt may or may not have missed Sunday’s game without a new deal.

“I’m glad we haven’t gotten to this point,” Watt said on Friday, via ESPN’s Brooke Pryor.

Watt not only became the highest-paid defensive player in the NFL with $ 112 million and a $ 35 million signing bonus, but he forced the Steelers to change the way they do business. Pittsburgh fully guaranteed the first three years of the Watt deal, a first for the franchise.

So how does Watt live up to the pressures of the record contract?

“Dude, I’ve been under pressure my whole life. This is what I’m made for, ”Watt said. “And I really believe that nothing about money will change me as a person. The work I have done will not change. It will only grow.

“It’s my job to prove to all these people who gave me this amount of money and who stood up on the table to say that they want me here, to prove them right. I know I can do it. I know exactly what it takes. I’ve been doing it all my life. It’s just a matter of keeping doing it and staying hungry. And I guarantee everyone here right now and everyone in this building, I’m still hungry.

Watt, 26, received support from his teammates, including Ben Roethlisberger and Cam Heyward, as he missed training to make a statement. He appreciated their public calls for leadership to pay Watt its value.

“When you go through something like this and try to stand up for what you believe in and do it yourself, being reassured by the people that you care the most about their opinion matters a lot,” Watt said. . “There are definitely times in this whole process where you feel almost alone, and that’s why it’s so important for these guys to say these beautiful things.”

Watt has been on the All-Pro squad each of the past two seasons and finished third in the Defensive Player of the Year vote in 2019 and second last season. He’s made 29.5 sacks over the past two seasons, including one of the NFL’s top 15 in 2020, with 77 quarterback hits, 15 breakthroughs, 10 forced fumbles and 23 tackles for a loss.