‘Too A lot Increase-Bust:’ Analysts Go away T.J. Watt Out Of High-10 Defenders In 2025

T.J. Watt is currently in the midst of a contract dispute with the Pittsburgh Steelers. That’s because he’s one of the best players in the league, and he feels like he should be paid as such. Watt has been dominant in his eight seasons with the Steelers, accumulating 108 sacks. He’s the Steelers’ all-time sack leader, and he’s trying to cash in with one more big contract. However, analyst Charles McDonald doesn’t believe Watt is a top 10 defender in the league going into this season.

“He’s one of the best defensive players of this decade,” McDonald said recently on the podcast Football 301. “If I can say you’re one of the best defensive Pittsburgh Steelers of all time, you are certified. I just thought that last year, for me at least, where you have these years where T.J. Watt is in DPOY contention, or he wins, or he comes in second to Myles Garrett, and Steelers fans are freaking out.

“I think if you looked at some of the metrics, at even his best years, it’s a little boom-bust as a pass rusher. Where he’s not getting consistent pressure, I think, like a Myles Garrett or Micah Parsons… I thought last year was a little bit too much boom-bust for his game.”

The rest of McDonald’s list consists of Jalen Carter, Kyle Hamilton, Nick Bosa, Chris Jones, Dexter Lawrence, Derek Stingley Jr., Fred Warner, Patrick Surtain II, Myles Garrett, and Micah Parsons. That’s a solid list of some of the best defenders in the NFL. However, leaving Watt off feels wrong.

Players like Garrett, Parsons, and Surtain are in the same realm as Watt. Two of those players are among the elite pass rushers in the NFL, and Surtain was the Defensive Player of the Year last year. Jones and Lawrence make sense, too. They’re some of the best defensive linemen in the league. There’s a good case to knock off one of those other names for Watt, though.

It’s fair to criticize what Watt did last year. He ended the season quietly, finishing the year with 11.5 sacks, his lowest total in a healthy year since he was a rookie. However, he also had six forced fumbles, which led the league. While it might’ve been a down year by his standards, Watt was still incredible.

Bosa is likely the player that could most easily be taken off of McDonald’s list for Watt. They’re both edge rushers, so it’s easier to compare them. Bosa has been one of the NFL’s elite pass rushers for years. Last season, he had nine sacks, one forced fumble, and one interception in 14 games. That’s after he posted 10.5 sacks and two forced fumbles in 2023.

While Bosa is an amazing player, it’s tough to say that he’s better than Watt. Those numbers aren’t everything, but Watt has been a more productive player than Bosa. Even after a down year, there’s a great case to make that Watt is better than Bosa.

McDonald wasn’t the only analyst in that video that didn’t list Watt as a top 10 defender, either. Matt Harmon also didn’t include Watt, and his reasoning was a little different.

“The only reason that I couldn’t put T.J. Watt on the list is because I think Cam Heyward was better than him last year. And Heyward wasn’t making my list. Maybe that’s stupid logic, but that’s a big part of why I didn’t have Watt in my top 10.”

Harmon’s top 10 was very similar to McDonald’s, except he had Aidan Hutchison on his list instead of Lawrence. Considering Hutchison only appeared in five games last season due to injury, having him on the list, but not Watt, feels a little surprising. However, Hutchison was on pace to win Defensive Player of the Year before that. If he recaptures that form, then he could be in for a big year.

However, it still might be a little soon to crown Hutchison. Watt has been one of the best players in the league for years, and he’s still a top 10 defender. Without him, the Steelers are a much worse team. The last time that Watt got a new contract, he tied the single-season sack record. Perhaps he’ll have a similarly explosive year this season if he and the Steelers can get a deal done.