A new defensive coordinator in Patrick Graham, continued depth with Nick Herbig and Jack Sawyer, and the likelihood of moving around the formation more in 2026 have expectations high for Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt.
The former All-Pro is coming off a down year, one that saw the end of the season cut short due to a freak injury that led to a surgical procedure. But prior to that crazy situation, Watt wasn’t himself.
He finished the season with just 7.0 sacks and 42 pressures, a significant decrease from his usual production. He also finished with a grade of just 74.2 overall from Pro Football Focus, well down from the mid-90s grades he was putting up year after year.
But now, with a more creative play caller in Graham in the mix, and added talent in the secondary, the belief is Watt will bounce back in 2026. He might not get back to his elite level once again, but for former NFL GM Doug Whaley, who appeared on the 93.7 The Fan Morning Show Wednesday, he should get back to a certain number of sacks this season.
“I would say if he scratched double digits, get that in between eight to 10 sacks, I think that’s gonna be a good stat line because again, I think they’re gonna have a rotation between him, [Alex] Highsmith, [Nick] Herbig, and then even a little [Jack Sawyer] sprinkled in,” Whaley said projecting Watt’s stat line, according to audio via 93.7 The Fan. “And in my opinion, what I would think about doing is really upping Herbig’s reps early in the season to hold T.J. and get him peaking at the end of the year, especially if you’re in that playoff run and playoff contention.
“Have him fresher at the end of the season instead of the beginning of these. And if they do that, I definitely think he could get to 10 [sacks].”
Projecting Watt for double-digit sacks, all while expecting him to play fewer snaps due to the emergence of Herbig and Sawyer, makes some sense.
He doesn’t need to be superhuman once again. He just needs to be efficient, move around a bit more to force offenses to adjust, and take advantage of 1-on-1 matchups when they present themselves. With Graham as defensive coordinator, Watt will be forced to move around much more than he ever has in the past.
That alone should help him create some mismatches and get after opposing quarterbacks. Add in the fact he doesn’t need to play 80% or more of the defensive snaps, and he could be more efficient and have more gas left in the tank late in the year. It’s worth noting that in his record-tying season in 2021 when he had 22.5 sacks, Watt played just 73% of the snaps.
That’s right where the Steelers should aim for in 2026, and that will create more snaps for Herbig and Sawyer. That’s a win-win.