Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt is entering the final year of his contract with the team at 30 years old. With him entering the final year of his contract, many are wondering if he will be with Pittsburgh after the 2025 season or not.
Some Pittsburgh fans think that 2025 could be a bad year for the team. If Pittsburgh is out of it at the trade deadline, some think that Pittsburgh should trade him to a contender and start all over. However, there is a chance that the Steelers could give him a contract extension and not worry about him getting traded in the future. Will Watt be with the Steelers after the 2025 NFL season or is he going to be elsewhere?
CBS Sports Writer Thinks That the Pittsburgh Steelers Should Sign T.J. Watt To a Contract Extension
CBS Sports writer Tyler Sullivan wrote about one player from each NFL team that should get a contract extension. He thinks that the Steelers should give Watt a contract extension. Sullivan said,
“Back in 2021, Watt and the Steelers agreed to a $112 million extension that made him the NFL’s highest-paid defensive player at the time. Now, the star pass rusher is entering the final year of that deal and could again look to reset the market. If he were to land such a deal, it’d have to exceed Myles Garrett’s $40 million AAV. Watt’s current AAV sits at roughly $28 million, so this would be quite the raise for the 30-year-old. That said, he deserves it. Since signing that deal, Watt has won the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award, added three more All-Pro nominations to his résumé and is coming off a 2024 season where he posted 11.5 sacks and a league-leading six forced fumbles. “
It may not be worth it for Pittsburgh to give him a long-term extension if they are potentially going to rebuild. Pittsburgh already traded wide receiver George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys for a 2026 third-round pick. Pittsburgh could probably get a haul for Watt if they traded him, instead of potentially paying him over $40 million per season.
During the 2024 NFL season, he recorded 61 tackles, 11.5 sacks, six forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and four pass deflections. Watt will turn 31 during the 2025 NFL season. If Pittsburgh does plan on giving him a contract extension, it means that they will have no plans to rebuild and it will also mean that they want him to retire as a member of the Steelers organization.
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