T.J. Watt justsigned the richest non-quarterback contract in NFL history.
Also and related, the sky remains a rich shade of blue.
Look, I'd been sharing for months that the subject was never worth more than a shrug, and that's how it's wound up, too. The Steelers were never going to lose this player, this person and, as such, they never -- not for a split-second -- engaged in any thought, never mind talks, about trading him. They wanted one thing, they had the means to achieve it, and they did.
Just like the player wanted one thing. To know T.J., as I feel like I've been able to over the years, is to know that a part of him would perish in putting on any other helmet. It's not just the Steelers. It's Pittsburgh. I've covered precious few professional athletes who've spoken more passionately of a connection with Pittsburgh, and I've covered even fewer who've lived it.
The contract's the contract. The only component that's counted for me through this process is whether or not the team could afford it in the now and in the near-term future. And it takes no more than a cursory glance to see that's the case.
Can he still perform at that level?
Come on ...
Is he being compensated for the past?
To an extent, sure. But that's the cost of doing business in the big leagues everywhere.
Worried about paying a quarterback in the future?
OK, so find that quarterback, pay the entry-level terms, and let that play itself out over, say, the next half-decade or so, by which point T.J. will be long gone.
He'll have been a Steeler for life. That's the point today. And for those who function with just as much awareness of what this franchise represents, it's a pretty damned powerful point.
THE ASYLUM
DK: It was never, ever in doubt
T.J. Watt just signed the richest non-quarterback contract in NFL history.
Also and related, the sky remains a rich shade of blue.
Look, I'd been sharing for months that the subject was never worth more than a shrug, and that's how it's wound up, too. The Steelers were never going to lose this player, this person and, as such, they never -- not for a split-second -- engaged in any thought, never mind talks, about trading him. They wanted one thing, they had the means to achieve it, and they did.
Just like the player wanted one thing. To know T.J., as I feel like I've been able to over the years, is to know that a part of him would perish in putting on any other helmet. It's not just the Steelers. It's Pittsburgh. I've covered precious few professional athletes who've spoken more passionately of a connection with Pittsburgh, and I've covered even fewer who've lived it.
The contract's the contract. The only component that's counted for me through this process is whether or not the team could afford it in the now and in the near-term future. And it takes no more than a cursory glance to see that's the case.
Can he still perform at that level?
Come on ...
Is he being compensated for the past?
To an extent, sure. But that's the cost of doing business in the big leagues everywhere.
Worried about paying a quarterback in the future?
OK, so find that quarterback, pay the entry-level terms, and let that play itself out over, say, the next half-decade or so, by which point T.J. will be long gone.
He'll have been a Steeler for life. That's the point today. And for those who function with just as much awareness of what this franchise represents, it's a pretty damned powerful point.
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