True Difference Between Steelers' TJ Watt's And Tyrod Taylor's Wild Lung Accidents Explained

The news regarding the Pittsburgh Steelers' star edge rusher TJ Watt has been quite frankly all over the place as the team prepares for a Week 15 contest against the Miami Dolphins. The most recent update certainly did imply that his lung ailment came out of the blue after receiving a dry needling treatment as the organization's facility. This leaves room for a lot of questions and very little answers. Many have related the incident to what happened to Tyrod Taylor when he was with the Los Angeles Chargers in 2020, which led to the quarterback missing over a month and suing the team doctor.

Taylor was getting an injection very close to a Chargers game against the Kansas City Chiefs, and all ended up going poorly in the process, leading to a collapsed lung, as Adam Schefter reported at the time.

"A Los Angeles Chargers team doctor accidentally punctured quarterback Tyrod Taylor's lung just before kickoff Sunday while trying to administer a pain-killing injection to the quarterback's cracked ribs."

There was sincere worry that Watt may face the same reality. Taylor's relationship with the team was ruined and he only played one snap for the rest of the 2020 campaign. Watt's health and wellbeing were at the top of everyone's list, which is why the fan base is breathing a sigh of relief. Rest and recovery is most important, but it's fair to wonder if he will return for a potential playoff run.

Brooke Pryor and Stephania Bell teamed up to discuss Watt's situation for ESPN. Bell works as an injury analyst for the outlet, and gave some more intriguing details that seem to put a positive spin on what happened with the Steelers' team captain.

"In Watt's situation, according to his brother JJ, he suffered a partially collapsed lung (also a pneumothorax [like Taylor]) after a dry needling treatment session. By definition, dry needling means no medication was being delivered via the needle, making this different from Taylor's specific procedure," Bell wrote.

The medical nuances of what may have happened isn't going to be fully grasped by everyone, but the very simple interpretation of Bell's reporting is that Pittsburgh's defender is not going through the same exact thing that Taylor did. With that, the hope has to be that Watt will find a way to recover quickly and get back to being the competitor that he is.

Bell also wrote about what can be expected for some kind of timeline regarding Watt's status. While the full story remains a bit mysterious, the physical therapist is confident that the pass rusher will rebound.

"The most critical aspect of Watt's case is that once he reported symptoms and was evaluated, he was sent to the hospital for care emergently and treated promptly by the appropriate personnel," Bell wrote. "This gives him an excellent chance of full recovery. Lung tissue is remarkably resilient, especially in a young, healthy athlete. A lung injury like Watt's has the potential to heal within 7-10 days, and there should be no long-term effects."

This was a rather scary situation, and had to have been a bit of a rollercoaster for Watt's family. It's never fun to hear that a loved one is in the hospital, but now, it's good to hear that the 2021 AP Defensive Player of the Year is at home and recovering, per Pryor.

Steelers May Have Lawsuit To Deal With

The full details of the situation remain murky, but Taylor's eventual legal pursuit could provide some sort of precedent for Watt. If there was indeed some sort of mistake made my medical personnel, a lawsuit for lost wages may be on the table, even though Watt's contract looks much different than Taylor's did in 2020. All that truly matters at this point is that the defender is recovering and seems to have avoided serious injury.

Do you think that the Steelers' medical personnel that worked with Watt could be facing some sort of discipline? Let us know in the comments below!

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