Mark Madden: T.J. Watt worth every red cent, but others on Steelers defense raise red flags

T. J. Watt got $80 million guaranteed when he signed his contract extension. He is the NFL’s highest-paid defensive player.

So far this season, despite injury, Watt has earned his keep.

The Steelers have won three games. Watt won two of them: Week 1 vs. Buffalo and this past Sunday against Seattle.

The Steelers’ record might be better than 3-3 had Watt not been hampered by a groin injury that caused him to miss the Week 3 home loss to Cincinnati and play at less than 100% since sustaining the problem.

Maybe Watt is back to full strength. If he was playing hurt during his tour de force against Seattle, it’s scary to think that he could do any better.

Watt had two sacks, two quarterback hits, three tackles for loss, three passes defended and seven tackles total.

Watt won the game in overtime, getting a 13-yard sack on third down to stymie Seattle’s first possession in OT. On the Seahawks’ next drive, Watt knocked the ball from the grip of quarterback Geno Smith. Devin Bush recovered. Chris Boswell kicked the game-winning field goal.

Watt has been worth every cent. He gets extra credit for playing through injury.

But, for the Steelers, a few decisions that once seemed easy are now difficult.

Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick is a free agent after the 2022 season. Fitzpatrick will be looking for an extension after this season. He will want to be the highest paid at his position.

Bush, an inside linebacker, is in the third year of his rookie contract. It expires after next season, but there is a fifth-year team option for 2023.

There’s no way to give Fitzpatrick and Bush what they want based on anything but faith.

Fitzpatrick had massive impact in 2019 after joining the Steelers via trade. In 14 games, he intercepted five passes, forced two fumbles, recovered three, and scored two touchdowns. (But the Steelers still didn’t make the playoffs.)

But since then, Fitzpatrick’s tangible impact has faded. He gets praised for the ripple effect his quality creates. But he mostly plays center field.

In 22 games since 2019, Fitzpatrick has four interceptions but none in 12 games. He has two forced fumbles since ‘19, one fumble recovery and zero touchdowns.

This season, Fitzpatrick’s trademark has been missed tackles. He missed three Sunday. (That’s also a Steelers trademark: Seattle back Alex Collins gained 70 of his 101 yards after contact.)

Fitzpatrick has been first-team All-Pro in each of the last two seasons. He’s been decent this year.

But the NFL’s highest-paid safety is Seattle’s Jamal Adams, who signed a four-year contract for $70 million ($38 million guaranteed) before the season.

The Steelers shouldn’t pay that to Fitzpatrick. He’s not playing well enough to merit that, and the money could be better spent elsewhere. Safety just isn’t that important.

As for Bush, he’s no better than average and does no one thing better than average. He had knee surgery in 2020 that ended his season after five games. Perhaps he’s not fully recovered.

Bush came off the field in sub packages during the victory over Seattle. Is he still nursing his bum knee? Has this season’s groin injury not fully healed? The Steelers apparently don’t feel Bush can cover, not right now.

But the Steelers will pick up Bush’s option because he’s a first-round pick and they traded up to get him in 2019. The Steelers will find a way to retain Fitzpatrick because they swapped a first-round pick to get him.

The unit has elite players, namely Watt and defensive end Cam Heyward.

Fitzpatrick’s pedigree doesn’t show often enough.

The defensive line is crippled by injuries to Stephon Tuitt and Tyson Alualu.

A lot of the Steelers’ defenders simply aren’t very good.

Consider the win over Seattle. The Steelers led 14-0 at halftime. Their defense was on the field for less than 10 minutes of the first half. It didn’t get beat up or tired out.

But Seattle, using second-stringers at quarterback and running back, scored on four possessions in the second half. Only the aforementioned big plays by Watt and a tackle for loss by Heyward enabled the Steelers to escape OT with the win.

The Steelers’ defense ranks 15th-best in yardage allowed, 16th-best in scoring defense, eighth in sacks and 26th in takeaways. It’s a low-pressure, mostly passive defense.

It’s not elite. It’s not even very good.