T.J. Watt has been ruled out for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Week 17 game against the Cleveland Browns days after returning to the practice field
Just two weeks after he suffered a partially punctured lung and had to undergo surgery, Watt took the practice field for the first time on Wednesday as a limited participant, doing individual drills with the defense.
While head coach Mike Tomlin believes that Watt is fully recovered from the surgery, the four-time All-Pro won’t play this week.
“That’s a fair estimation, but again, I’ll let him speak in terms of his medical,” Tomlin said, via ESPN’s Brooke Pryor. “I think for me, to talk about injury is one thing. To talk about medical is something else. And so that’s one of the reasons why I’ve been a little bit hesitant besides my lack of expertise on the subject matter.”
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Watt was undergoing a dry needling treatment session at the team’s practice facility earlier this month when he started to feel discomfort. He was sent to a local hospital for testing, and then needed to undergo surgery to stabilize and repair a partially collapsed lung.
Watt missed the team’s last two games — wins over the Miami Dolphins and Detroit Lions — as a result. The 31-year-old has 53 total tackles and seven sacks in 13 games this season, his first after inking a then-record three-year, $123 million extension with the team.
The Steelers enter Sunday’s contest in Cleveland with a 9-6 record and can clinch the AFC North with a win over the Browns. If the Baltimore Ravens fall on Saturday night in their game against the Green Bay Packers, the Steelers will win the division, too. That would send them into their third straight postseason.
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While Watt would undoubtedly give the defense a big boost, the team won’t rush his return — especially if their playoff status is already secured come game time.
“It’s awesome to have him out there,” linebacker Alex Highsmith said. “Just seeing him back out in the field with us, he’s getting better every single day, so I think just to have him back out there, just as a leader for our group, it’s just awesome to see. Excited to see how he continues to work his way back.”
