(Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
T.J. Watt was on the Pat McAfee Show on Monday, and the All-Pro outside linebacker and favorite to win Defensive Player of the Year shared an interesting story in regards to him signing his four-year, $112 million contract that made him the highest-paid defensive player in the game back in early September.
It was previously reported that Watt went into Art Rooney II's office and said "let's get the deal done" and then left to go workout. Watt told McAfee that it wasn't a Rocky Balboa type of moment, but he always works out on Thursdays.
"I was sick and tired of going back and forth, and I just wanted to get the deal done," Watt said. "Playing in Pittsburgh, I told Mr. Rooney that this community and the people here, the blue-collarness, it just matches me, it matches my family, my beliefs. I just love playing for Mr. Rooney and Coach Tomlin."
With producing 22.5 sacks this season and tying the single-season sack record with Michael Strahan, Watt should be a lock for Defensive Player of the Year, which is voted on by the Associated Press. Watt was named first-team All-Pro unanimously by the AP in 2021.
Watt is one of only two players in NFL history to have 20 plus sacks in 14 or fewer games since sacks became an official statistic in 1982. The only other one to do it was Hall of Famer Reggie White, who had 21 sacks in 12 games in 1987 in a strike-shortened season.
Watt was named to the Pro Bowl for the fourth consecutive season and was voted as the Steelers' MVP by his teammates for the third straight year. This is the third consecutive year that Watt's been named first-team All-Pro.