Will Steelers' T.J. Watt receive extension before 2025 season?

It seemed to outsiders that Pittsburgh Steelers star pass-rusher T.J. Watt was sending a message regarding his contract situation when he wasn't spotted as the Steelers opened organized team activities last week. 

On Monday, team insider Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette revealed that the "expectation" is that Watt and the Steelers "will come to some agreement" before Pittsburgh opens the 2025 regular season with a matchup at the New York Jets on Sept. 7. 

Dulac noted that Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns inking a four-year, $160M extension that included $123.5M guaranteed earlier this offseason "likely" impacted how much Watt now wants from the Steelers. Additionally, Dulac indicated that Pittsburgh acquiring wide receiver DK Metcalf from the Seattle Seahawks and giving him a five-year contract worth $150M back in March could cost the Steelers as it pertains to negotiations with Watt's camp. 

Watt signed a four-year extension worth over $112M that included $80M in fully guaranteed money ahead of the 2021 season after he participated only in individual drills throughout training camp. It's unclear if he'd play on the final year of that deal in the event that the Steelers don't match his asking price. 

Recent updates continue to suggest that either free agent Aaron Rodgers or current Atlanta Falcons backup Kirk Cousins will be Pittsburgh's starting quarterback in September. Acquiring either veteran would be a win-now move for a team, so it's unlikely Pittsburgh will look to trade Watt unless the club has to make longtime backup Mason Rudolph its Week 1 QB1. 

Charean Williams of Pro Football Talk mentioned that the Steelers traditionally end contract negotiations once the season gets underway. Pittsburgh has plenty of time to work things out with Watt, and it sounds like individuals within the organization aren't concerned about the matter as of the first week of June. 

"The Steelers reward their key players as much for past performance as they do future projections," Dulac explained. "They did that last season when they gave defensive end Cam Heyward a new contract at age 35 as he was approaching his 14th NFL season. ...In all likelihood, the Steelers will come to some agreement with Watt, their all-time sack leader." 

Per StatMuse, no player has recorded more regular-season sacks than Watt (108) since he entered the NFL via the 2017 draft. There's no sign that Pittsburgh plans to punt on the upcoming campaign, so the club should want to make Watt happy by giving him financial security beyond 2025 sooner rather than later.