Steelers Great Ben Roethlisberger Speculates Some Bad News For Pittsburgh Fans As TJ Watt Makes Statement

The Pittsburgh Steelers have found themselves at the heart of a ton of offseason drama in 2025. First, it was the Aaron Rodgers-saga that lasted several months, and now it is a hold-out from star outside linebacker TJ Watt. Watt is entering the final year of his contract, and he wants an extension. Pittsburgh had the opportunity to extend him during the 2024 offseason, but the organization chose not to. It would have been cheaper to get a deal done then, but now the Steelers have put themselves in a difficult situation as other star defenders have reset the market.

So far during the 2025 offseason Maxx Crosby, Myles Garrett, and Danielle Hunter have signed lucrative contract extensions. Garrett is the highest-paid out of that group after he signed a four-year, $160 million deal with $123.5 million guaranteed. Watt likely wants something within that realm, at least when referring to the guaranteed money. His team and the organization have been trying to get a deal done, but it doesn't seem like great progress has been made.

Former Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was talked about the situation on the most recent episode of his podcast, Footbahlin' With Ben Roethlisberger, and he looked back at when Watt got his last extension ahead of the 2021 season. He and the organization were in a similar spot, but Watt held-in rather than holding-out.

"It's interesting because this is now a mandatory minicamp." Roethlisberger said. "So he can be fined. It'll be interesting to see if the Steelers decide to fine him or not, because they don't have to. Last time this happened was four years ago when TJ was looking for a new contract. The difference is, he's holding out, which means he is not there. Last time, he held in, which means, 'I'm going to come, I'll be here, but I'm not participating.'"

Watt could be holding out rather than holding in in order to make a statement to the organization, or he could just be taking some of the extra time off to spend with his new child while his contract gets figured out. However, it could just mean that things are not going well behind the scenes.

Roethlisberger was in the league for 18 seasons, and he has seen a lot of contract disputes unfold in Pittsburgh and across the league. He knows that if a player is holding out, it is for a reason, and he thinks he knows what it might be for Watt and the Steelers.

"This year he's not there." Roethlisberger said. "You asked the question of what's the difference? I don't know, only TJ knows the difference. My only speculation and guess is like, they must not be close. If you were close, I would think that TJ would do what he did last time."

Roethlisberger believes if the two sides were close, Watt would be present at minicamp, but maybe not practicing. The fact that he isn't shows that the two sides are far apart on a potential deal, and it is hard to determine what might be the main issue, although it is more than likely the guaranteed money that Watt is being offered.

Steelers Put Themselves In This Situation

Pittsburgh could have just extended Watt during the 2024 offseason, which is something the star defender was interested in getting done. The Steelers could have looked at all of the premiere pass-rushers that might have been getting new deals during the 2025 offseason and figured it would have been a good idea to get an extension done with Watt prior to the 2024 season. 

It was clear a guy like Micah Parsons was going to be paid, although he is still waiting. The same goes for Garrett and Crosby. It was an absurd decision by the organization to wait, and it could end up hurting the Steelers.

What do you think about Roethlisberger's theory on Watt holding out? Let us know in the comments below!

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