With the T.J. Watt drama growing uglier by the day in Pittsburgh, Cam Heyward is weighing in with his thoughts.
All eyes should be trained on Week 1 of the NFL season rapidly approaching on the horizon, especially teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Ben Roethlisberger is very much on his last leg, and this Steelers season — more than others recently — is Super Bowl or bust. So when an off-field complication like T.J. Watt demanding he be paid what he’s worth arises, it’s a potential distraction the Steelers would probably rather not deal with.
Watt is well within his rights to demand top dollar. He’d get exactly that were he to hit free agency, but the Steelers are uninterested in seeing either of those things happen. Watt refused to participate in team drills while he attempted to negotiate a new deal, but has since returned to the team.
That hasn’t halted conversations about his value, however.
Cam Heyward reacts to T.J. Watt contract drama with Steelers
Cam Heyward had some unfiltered thoughts on the ongoing drama and took an unsurprising side.
“We all feel like T.J. should be paid,” Heyward said, via Brooke Pryor of ESPN. “He’s put in the time and the work. He’s a productive player. His injury history — he’s been out here, he doesn’t miss much games. He’s a game-changer. And my conversations with him are, he should be paid. It’s not anything to gloss over. I just think this guy has been a contributor for us for a long time and where he got drafted, we were very lucky. We all knew he was going to be a player here, and he’s answered the call and done more.”
Heyward taking the side of his teammate is rather unsurprising. The main takeaway for Steelers fans shouldn’t be which side Heyward took rather the fact that he’s speaking out it publically.
The Steelers have big goals this season, and any small distraction has the potential to be a big-time problem. Laser focus is what is required in Pittsburgh should the team want to send Roethlisberger off into retirement with a Lombardi Trophy, no one can take their eye off the prize.