T.J. Watt passes brother J.J. for notable NFL milestone
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt has had some big shoes to fill living in the shadow of his older brother J.J..
But now, T.J. has a claim to fame that his brother doesn’t after passing him for the second-most sacks through his first 100 NFL games (88), besting him by half-a-sack (88 to 87.5).
The only player with more sacks through his first 100 games is Hall of Famer Reggie White, who tallied an improbable 105 sacks over that span.
The news came as no surprise to J.J., who stated last week before the Steelers' 20-16 win over the Tennessee Titans on “Thursday Night Football” that he expected his younger brother, who was the 2021 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, to surpass him in the NFL record books.
“T.J. is going to break all my records,” he said. “He’s going to break every single one, it’s just a matter of when and I’m very happy for him.”
A five-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro, the younger Watt is also just 26.5 sacks behind his older brother's career mark of 114.5, which ranks 24th all-time. White ranks second with 198.
T.J., 29, has now logged double-digit sacks in five of his seven seasons, including his single-season record 22.5 sacks in 2021. He’s already the Steelers all-time leader in sacks, surpassing two-time Super Bowl champion James Harrison earlier this season.
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