Steelers' Mike McCarthy Wants Less TJ Watt For An Important Reason

The Pittsburgh Steelers have spent years treating every snap from their best pass rusher like something too valuable to willingly give away. That instinct is understandable when one player can wreck an entire possession by himself, but Pittsburgh finally has enough talent behind its starters to consider a different calculation. The goal is no longer squeezing everything possible out of September if doing so leaves less available when games tighten in December and January.

Mike McCarthy does not want TJ Watt routinely living above 60 defensive snaps per game in 2026. During a recent media availability, McCarthy explained that Pittsburgh's edge depth should allow the coaching staff to manage Watt and the rest of the group with the fourth quarter specifically in mind.

“I’m not interested in seeing TJ, you know, average 60-plus… plays a game. That’s, that’s not the best for him. And that’s not the best for us as a defense. It’s important for us to keep those guys fresh and make sure they’re, you know, they’re at their best in the fourth quarter,” McCarthy said.

The idea sounds almost backwards until Pittsburgh's roster is considered. Watt remains the player opposing offensive coordinators build protection plans around, so deliberately removing him from the field can feel like doing the offense a favor. McCarthy is betting that 50-something snaps of an explosive Watt can ultimately provide more value than asking him to survive another exhausting workload simply because he is capable of doing it. Pittsburgh can contemplate that because the replacement snaps are no longer being handed to placeholders.

Alex Highsmith remains an established starter on the opposite side, while Nick Herbig has developed into a legitimate impact rusher rather than somebody who needs Watt or Highsmith unavailable to justify playing time. The Steelers reinforced their belief in Herbig with a major extension this offseason, removing any ambiguity about how prominently he fits into their defensive plans.

Then there is Jack Sawyer. The second-year defender gives Pittsburgh another young edge player capable of absorbing rotational work, which makes the numbers considerably easier for McCarthy to manage. A year ago, every Watt breather could feel like a tradeoff between rest and disruption. This roster is designed to make that tradeoff much smaller.

Watt himself has already acknowledged the importance of improving Pittsburgh's edge rotation. The Steelers have enough bodies to keep their rushers moving through the game instead of waiting until fatigue makes the decision for them. McCarthy now sounds prepared to enforce that approach rather than merely hoping the rotation develops naturally.

There is a football reason beyond preserving Watt's body over 17 games.

Pass rushing is an explosive assignment. An edge defender can spend one snap converting speed to power against a 320-pound tackle, chase a quarterback across the pocket on the next and then have to set a violent edge against the run seconds later. The difference between playing fresh and playing tired can be one step off the ball, one hand arriving late or one rush that stalls before the quarterback is forced to move.

That difference becomes most valuable late. McCarthy specifically mentioning the fourth quarter shows this is not simply about lowering Watt's season-long mileage. Pittsburgh wants its most dangerous rushers to have something left when an opposing offense becomes predictable. Third-and-long with five minutes remaining is precisely when Watt, Highsmith and Herbig should be at their most disruptive, not trying to recover from 55 snaps that already happened.

Patrick Graham can make the rotation even easier to justify because Pittsburgh does not necessarily have to treat its edge players as two starters and two backups. The Steelers have spent the offseason exploring ways to put multiple rushers on the field together and move them around the front. Herbig getting more work does not always require Watt disappearing, and Sawyer can contribute without Pittsburgh abandoning its best pressure packages.

That flexibility should prevent the snap count from becoming a rigid quota. If Watt is dominating a crucial stretch, nobody expects McCarthy to remove him because a spreadsheet says his turn is over. The larger goal is avoiding unnecessary accumulation earlier in games so the defense retains options when the result actually hangs in the balance.

Steelers Finally Have The Depth To Protect Watt From Himself

Managing Watt may require some discipline from the coaching staff because elite players rarely become elite by volunteering to watch meaningful snaps from the sideline. The competitive instinct that makes Watt valuable is the same one that can make a rotation difficult once the game begins.

McCarthy's comments establish the philosophy before Week 1 can interfere with it.

Pittsburgh has invested enough money and draft capital at edge that using the depth is no longer optional roster decoration. Herbig needs snaps. Sawyer needs opportunities. Highsmith remains too productive to disappear. If all four are genuinely part of the plan, Watt does not need to carry a workload designed for a defense with nobody trustworthy behind him.

The Steelers still want their best pass rusher deciding games. They just want to make sure he has enough left in the tank when those games are actually ready to be decided.

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