​Remember when Pittsburgh Steelers defender T.J. Watt was considered one of the NFL’s top edge rushers? I do. But ESPN also noted his decline in 2025, as the Steelers veteran slipped in the new edge-rusher rankings. After finishing last year as the No. 2 edge rusher, Watt has dropped to No. 7, just ahead of Nick Bosa of the San Francisco 49ers and Brian Burns of the New York Giants.
“This is a sizable fall for Watt, a three-time sack king who logged back-to-back No. 2 rankings over the past two years,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote. Watt missed three late-season games in 2025 due to a partially collapsed lung that resulted from an accident during a routine dry-needling procedure at the team facility. Yet his pass-rush win rate in 14 games stood at 11.7%, the lowest among this year’s top 10 rushers. Fowler noted that Watt could benefit from Pittsburgh’s scheme change under the newly appointed defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. Whether that hope proves realistic remains to be seen, but Watt’s performance in 2025 certainly didn’t help him climb the rankings.
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