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Game days for the Watt family are much different now than in recent years, as there is only Pittsburgh Steelers star edge rusher T.J. Watt in the league, while his older brother, J.J., and younger brother and former teammate, Derek, are both retired.
That also means J.J. and Derek are both locked in on T.J. and the Steelers each week, which has led to watching a lot of Justin Fields at quarterback.
Russell Wilson may be healthy this week, but it appears Fields will continue to start for Mike Tomlin’s squad, and rightfully so. Pittsburgh is 3-1, and though they suffered their first loss of the season last week on the road against the Indianapolis Colts, it was Fields who was consistently making plays to keep them in the game.
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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Justin Fields, #2, looks to throw a pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Fields has not been flashy at all. In fact, new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith was trying to ease him into the starting role at the start of the year with an emphasis on the run game and easy pass concepts.
However, the Watt brothers, as they watched T.J. get three sacks and 12 tackles through four games, have been impressed with what Fields has put on the gridiron thus far in this new chapter with Pittsburgh.
“He’s improved every game,” J.J. told Fox News Digital. “They’ve made it a little easier on him from the start in leaning on the running game and giving him some easy completions in that first game like they talked about. Arthur Smith talked about how he didn’t want to throw in the middle because of Jessie Bates, so just trying to make the game easy for him.
“As he’s gone each week, his confidence has grown. Obviously, his running ability, we’ve all known about that, so that adds to it. But he’s getting that belief in himself and the team is believing in him, so everything is coming together, and it’s working very well.”
Derek added, “I think he’s just done very well, like J.J. said. I mean, just really managing the game well, and he brings that extra dynamic to it with the plays he can make with his feet. He’s done a great job doing what they need to do to win games. Last game was a little tough, and I thought he played well and gave them a fighting chance. But overall, he’s done enough to help them win games and that’s all you can really ask.”
That is the key; Fields is not being flashy or trying to do too much.
Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Justin Fields, #2, throws a pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024 in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
The Steelers are only averaging 18.8 points per game, which is 24th in the league. However, they are averaging 128.5 yards rushing per game, which is 10th-best. Fields is adding to that total with his runs while throwing for 207.5 yards per game at a 70.6% completion rate.
Pittsburgh obviously wants that number up, but all that matters to Coach Tomlin and the rest of the pack is the win-loss record, which currently has them atop the AFC North.
However, the Steelers would not be in this position without a stellar defense that allowed the fourth-lowest yards per game (261.3) and the second-least amount of points per contest (13.3).
The Watts know their brother has something to do with that, as T.J. has consistently given offensive lines trouble for the past seven seasons. He had 19 sacks last year to lead the league, though Cleveland Browns star Myles Garrett was named Defensive Player of the Year. T.J., though, was granted that award in 2021.
“We text all day, every day,” J.J. said of how the brothers interact with T.J. on game day. “We literally texted a couple hundred times this morning already. So, game day’s the same. Texting during the game, texting after the game. So, we’re constantly in communication. It’s the best part of having two brothers, and it’s also the craziest part of having two brothers who play in the NFL. There’s really almost nobody on the planet that gets to have conversations like these with their brothers.”
“Literally every game starts with a text in the group chat in all caps, ‘GAMEDAY TJ,’ with a bunch of exclamation points,” Derek added. “Then, get a gauge on how he’s feeling, and yeah, we’re absolutely locked in on game day watching him and blowing up his phone for after the game to come see our thoughts. Yeah, just love watching him and keeping in touch for sure.”
J.J. Watt, left, with his brothers Derek Watt and T.J. Watt, right, appears on the red carpet prior to the NFL Honors awards presentation at YouTube Theater. (Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
The Watts are a tight-knit band of brothers who truly champion one another, and it is on full display each week when T.J. takes the field in black and gold.
However, what the Steelers have been missing with such a great defense is consistency at the quarterback position since Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, and there is still some more to be desired from Fields. He has proven he can lead Pittsburgh to victories.
GAME DAY TACOS FOR THE WATTS
J.J. and Derek may not be competing on the field anymore, but that does not mean the competitive juices are not still flowing.
That was on full display after they all, including T.J., partnered with Old El Paso for a head-to-head game day taco competition, called “Watt Can Taco,” where J.J. was host and judge as T.J. and Derek took usual game day foods and built tacos with them.
The results were both satisfyingly competitive and delicious.
“Being the judge and tasting them all, some of them were certainly interesting,” J.J. said. “You’re wondering how soup’s going to turn into a taco. Shockingly better than I expected. But it turned into a real competition very quickly as you can imagine being one of three brothers who are very, very competitive. So, even on set, even filming a commercial, it turned into a very real competition. We also just got to have some delicious Old El Paso creations. That nacho cheese taco was phenomenal.”
The Watt Brothers, J.J., T.J. and Derek, make game day-inspired tacos with Old El Paso. (Old El Paso)
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“Definitely we made some new creations for sure that probably have never been done. We proved anything can taco. One of my favorites was probably the Philly cheesesteak taco I made,” Derek added.
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