Steelers edge rusher T.J. Watt had to exit last week’s loss to the Raiders with a groin injury, but there’s a chance he could be on the field for Sunday’s contest against the Bengals.
Watt was a limited participant for Pittsburgh’s Wednesday and Thursday practices. And Watt said Friday that though dealing with groin injuries can be difficult to deal with, he’s done plenty to manage it this week.
“I think it’s any soft-tissue injury, to be honest with you. This isn’t going around playing Pee Wee football — this is playing with guys who do this for a living,” Watt said, via Brooke Pryor of ESPN. “So it’s just trying to be smart. But at the same time, just knowing your body more than anything. And like I said, I felt like I was able to do a good amount this week to leave the door open for Sunday.”
Via Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL Media, Watt added, “If I’m going to play, I’m going to play like I always do.”
That would be bad news for those tasked with protecting Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow. Watt recorded a pair of sacks, a forced fumble, a tackle for loss, and five QB hits in Pittsburgh’s season-opening victory over Buffalo. And in just 16 defensive snaps last week, Watt had another strip-sack along with four total tackles.
The Bengals have allowed a league-high 10 sacks on Burrow through two games, with the quarterback hit an additional six times.