The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the NFL’s cornerstone franchises, but since T.J. Watt entered the league, the team hasn’t had a whole lot of playoff success.
Or any at all.
The Steelers have made the postseason four times since Watt was drafted in 2017. They have lost every one of those games, most recently falling to the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card Round this past January.
During an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Watt made it clear that he is getting tired of Pittsburgh’s playoff failures.
“Obviously, didn’t go the way we wanted in the end,” Watt said of the 2023 season, via Jeremy Pike of Steelers Depot. “This is my seventh year, this past season. To not win a playoff game is embarrassing and not how we do things in Pittsburgh.”
The Steelers last won a playoff game in January 2017, representing the franchise’s longest postseason drought since it win its first playoff game back in 1972.
Of course, Pittsburgh’s inability to advance in the playoffs in recent years is no fault of Watt’s.
The superstar edge rusher is coming off of a spectacular campaign in which he led the league with 19 sacks to go along with 68 tackles, an interception, four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and eight passes defended en route to his six straight Pro Bowl appearance and fourth First-Team All-Pro selection.
He also finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting, marking his fourth top-3 finish. He won the award in 2021 after tying Michael Strahan’s single-season record of 22.5 sacks while adding 64 tackles, five forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.
It doesn’t help the Steelers’ case that they place in the AFC North, which is one of the toughest divisions in football. Every team in the division finished with a winning record this past season, and let’s remember that Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow missed half the year.
If T.J. Watt and the Steelers want to make a playoff run next season, they are going to have to fight tooth and nail to get it done.
More must-reads: