PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt missed practice with a new toe injury on Wednesday. While Watt often misses the first practice of the week, the issue is something to take note of moving forward.
Watt’s injury happened late in their game against the Buffalo Bills. He was not mentioned by head coach Mike Tomlin on Tuesday, which makes it seem likely Watt should play against the Baltimore Ravens in a must-win game. If he could not play, the Steelers would start Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig.
Watt registered just one pressure against the Bills, who were down both of their starting offensive tackles. Teams have started to chip Watt and reduce splits to muddy his path, and they will not give him free one-on-ones anymore.
This injury could slow him down even more. In 2025, Watt’s first step is just 0.87 from the time of the snap, which is a career low for him, and far from where he was at 0.75 in 2023 at the height of his powers.
Watt slowed down to end the season a year ago after suffering an ankle injury, too, and so it is not all that out of the picture to see this toe injury potentially harming Watt’s production over the next few weeks if it lingers.