T.J. Watt declined to report to the Steelers’ mandatory minicamp, and one beat writer has some strong opinions about that. On the Kaboly + Mack podcast, Mark Kaboly shared his thoughts on Watt’s decision, admitting it surprised him. While he said he believes Watt is the best defender in the league, and the Steelers should pay him like it, he doesn’t agree with this.
“I also think the guy should be showing up to a mandatory minicamp where every other one of his teammates are while he’s under contract”, Kaboly said of T.J. Watt. “Just go out there, show your pretty face, then leave.
“I think he needed to be there. I don’t think this will expedite the situation whatsoever. Like I said, I think he needs to be paid. I think he should get what needs to be done. But I think he needs to be there. As a leader of the team, he needs to be there”.
The Steelers had full attendance outside of T.J. Watt for mandatory minicamp, as one would expect. Even QB Aaron Rodgers showed up, and he wasn’t even under contract until shortly beforehand. Reportedly, Rodgers did so because the Steelers wanted him there, and he obliged.
Notably, Watt did not skip minicamp the last time he and the Steelers were in contract negotiations. He did hold in during training camp, and the deal came down to the wire. He first earned a captaincy in 2020, but his peers did not vote him one that year, in 2021.
Watt has been a captain again for the past three seasons, but what if he has another extended hold-in? Being a team captain isn’t the be-all, end-all, and obviously Cameron Heyward is the more significant leader of the unit. But with T.J. Watt elevating his dispute by skipping mandatory minicamp, will that have an impact on how he’s viewed?
Another key difference between his contract dispute in 2021 and this one is that he is a new father. Watt and his wife, Dani, welcomed their first child, Blakely Marie, in March. Since then, he hasn’t been around. Nobody really expected Watt at OTAs, but I think most on the outside figured he would show up to minicamp.
“You saying you don’t want to be there because you want to make a point? Maybe it’s not that”, Kaboly acknowledged. “Maybe I’m totally wrong, that he just wants to spend a couple more days with his young daughter. But you know what? There’s about a dozen other people on the team that have young kids, too”.
Indeed, many pundits made similar arguments about Aaron Rodgers and his feet-dragging over signing with the Steelers. While he cited issues in his personal life, he is not alone in that regard, but we all have to work. Of course, he wasn’t under contract, and he showed up to minicamp, unlike Watt.
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