{"id":187128,"date":"2025-07-07T00:43:14","date_gmt":"2025-07-07T00:43:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/187128\/"},"modified":"2025-07-07T00:43:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-07T00:43:14","slug":"is-a-patriots-trade-for-t-j-watt-a-long-shot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/187128\/","title":{"rendered":"Is a Patriots Trade for T.J. Watt a Long Shot?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Is a Patriots Trade for T.J. Watt a Long Shot?<\/a> originally appeared on Athlon Sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n

T.J. Watt\u2019s contract standoff with the Pittsburgh Steelers has sparked trade rumors, but does a move to the New England Patriots seem like a fantasy? The star edge rusher wants to be the NFL\u2019s highest-paid non-quarterback, demanding over $40.25 million annually. Can the Patriots pull off this blockbuster, or is it just a pipe dream?<\/p>\n

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The Patriots boast $61 million in salary cap space, per Spotrac, enough to absorb Watt\u2019s hefty price tag. Yet, a proposed trade, Jabrill Peppers, a 2026 second-round pick, and a 2027 third-rounder, lacks the first-round pick Pittsburgh would likely demand.<\/p>\n

Pittsburgh\u2019s playoff aspirations make trading Watt illogical. The Steelers, bolstered by acquisitions like Jalen Ramsey and Aaron Rodgers, are all-in for 2025. ESPN\u2019s Jeremy Fowler noted,<\/a> \u201cThere\u2019s not a lot of traction in the Steelers\u2019 organization to trade Watt\u201d ESPN.com. But will they pay him what he wants?<\/p>\n

\"New<\/p>\n

New England Patriots guard Mike Onwenu (71) blocks against Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt (90) during the second quarter at Acrisure Stadium.Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

New England, rebuilding after consecutive four-win seasons, isn\u2019t one star away from contention. Watt, turning 31 in October, offers no long-term guarantee, especially in a contract year. The Patriots need foundational pieces, not an overly priced rental.<\/p>\n

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Watt\u2019s elite production, 15 sacks in 2024, makes him tempting, but his age raises red flags. NFL Analysis Network<\/a> warns that edge rushers often decline post-30, and New England risks overpaying for diminishing returns. Pittsburgh\u2019s focus remains on extending him.<\/p>\n

Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette<\/a> reported that Watt\u2019s demand for a five-year deal is a sticking point, as age-related decline concerns linger. Both sides are digging in, but Pittsburgh\u2019s history of last-minute extensions suggests Watt stays put. Will the Patriots defy the odds, or is this trade talk just noise? Stay tuned.<\/p>\n

Related: Patriots Rookie Garnering Huge Praise From Analysts<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports<\/a> on Jul 6, 2025, where it first appeared.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Is a Patriots Trade for T.J. Watt a Long Shot? originally appeared on Athlon Sports. T.J. Watt\u2019s contract…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":153586,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2050],"tags":[1586,7,7899,1815,1167,249,2326,2094,6,208,520,57,5226],"class_list":{"0":"post-187128","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-england-patriots","8":"tag-aaron-rodgers","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-jabrill-peppers","11":"tag-jalen-ramsey","12":"tag-new-england","13":"tag-new-england-patriots","14":"tag-newengland","15":"tag-newenglandpatriots","16":"tag-nfl","17":"tag-patriots","18":"tag-pittsburgh","19":"tag-pittsburgh-steelers","20":"tag-t-j-watt"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114809182998024781","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187128","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=187128"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/187128\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/153586"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=187128"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=187128"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=187128"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}