Pittsburgh Steelers star pass rusher T.J. Watt will not hold out of the team’s training camp, according to Mark Kaboly of the Pat McAfee Show.
Watt, who held out of the team’s mandatory minicamp, could send another message and miss training camp, which would cause him to rack up significant fines if he did so. The NFL fines players once they start missing training camp, not the team.
“There is no anticipation for Watt to hold out when camp starts on July 23 and there has been no inquires made to other teams about trading him, according to sources. Basically, these are how high-profile and big money deals go. Seems like it could go down to the wire as it did in 2021,” Kaboly wrote.
Watt held in during his first contract negotiations, opting to work off to the side instead of holding out. If he does show up to training camp, it is likely Watt will do the same he did during that process.
Watt, 30, will turn 31 in October and is coming off a second half of the 2024 season that saw him banged up and unproductive. The Steelers want to have some leverage against the perceived risk of Watt’s contract.
Myles Garrett’s $40 million per year already sets a high bar for the Pittsburgh Steelers to meet when it comes to the next extension for Watt. Detroit’s Aidan Hutchinson could top that number, driving the asking price for Watt’s annual gross average and potentially guaranteed money up even more.
The 30-year-old edge rusher remains one of the NFL’s elites. At the annual league meetings last week, general manager Omar Khan said the team hopes to see Watt finish his career with the Steelers.
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