RK “HE’S NO MYLES GARRETT OR PARSONS” — AND WATT JUST FIRED BACK WITH A STATEMENT THAT SHUT THE ROOM DOWN
An anonymous NFL executive set off a firestorm this week after dismissing T.J. Watt during a conversation with The Athletic. While ranking AFC contenders, the executive claimed Watt “isn’t the same type of game-wrecker” as Myles Garrett or Micah Parsons, sparking immediate backlash across Steelers Nation.
The comments landed at a dramatic moment for Pittsburgh, who sit at 5–4 after a roller-coaster first half of the season. With a crucial Week 11 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals looming, fans and teammates viewed the remark as not only disrespectful — but completely detached from reality.
Watt has long been the heartbeat of Pittsburgh’s identity, wreaking havoc on quarterbacks regardless of scheme, coordinator, or roster health. For years, he has produced elite numbers under constant double-teams, single-handedly flipping games with forced fumbles, strip-sacks, and drive-killing pressures in moments when the defense needed him most.
Since entering the league, Watt has dominated AFC North play, consistently disrupting Cincinnati, Baltimore, and Cleveland regardless of who lines up at quarterback. His ability to tilt games late has turned divisional battles into showcases, often forcing opponents to abandon entire sections of their playbooks to avoid him.
Yet criticisms like this are nothing new to Watt. Despite an NFL Defensive Player of the Year award, historic sack totals, and multiple All-Pro seasons, he has often been compared, dismissed, or overshadowed by narratives favoring flashier defenses. Each time, he responds with what Pittsburgh calls “Watt football”— relentless, violent, disciplined dominance.
When asked about the anonymous shot, Watt didn’t raise his voice or show frustration. Instead, he offered the kind of steady, cold confidence that has followed him since Wisconsin — the voice of a superstar who has built his reputation through production, not praise, and through grit rather than headlines.
“THEY’VE DOUBTED ME SINCE COLLEGE, SINCE THE DRAFT, SINCE MY FIRST SNAP IN THIS LEAGUE. AND YET, HERE I AM — STILL PRODUCING, STILL IMPACTING GAMES. THEY CAN COMPARE ME TO ANYONE THEY WANT. I’M BUILT DIFFERENT. I DON’T CHASE RESPECT. I EARN IT, SNAP AFTER SNAP.”
As the Steelers prepare for Week 11 against the Bengals, this storyline only adds fuel to an already fierce rivalry. Cincinnati knows the truth better than anyone — when T.J. Watt plays angry, stadiums tilt and outcomes change. And on Sunday, Pittsburgh expects their franchise defender to speak the only language he trusts: chaos.
