The Pittsburgh Steelers will continue to be a part of the NFL's 2025 offseason news cycle until Aaron Rodgers officially makes a decision about his future. No one is quite sure what the veteran is planning to do, but the expectation is that he will forego retirement and play in the black and gold for at least a season.
Lost in that discussion, along with the wide receiver dilemma, has been the future of star edge rusher, T.J. Watt. He is due for yet another contract extension, but the Cleveland Browns made things difficult by giving Myles Garrett an average of $40M per season.
There have been some that have suggested that the Steelers should trade Watt while he still has value at 30, but the majority of the fan base understands that he is expected to be a member of the franchise until he decides to hang up his cleats one day. One of the individuals that has benefitted the most from Watt's brilliance is his partner-in-crime, Alex Highsmith.
The one-two punch rushing the quarterback has made things extremely difficult for opposing offenses in recent years. While Watt is paid more, Highsmith has a lucrative deal of his own after a phenomenal start to his career. The former third-round pick joined Ian Rapoport and Mike Garafolo on an episode of The Insiders on Thursday evening to talk about all things Steelers.
Highsmith was questioned about the cryptic Instagram post that Watt had not too long ago that featured him holding up a peace sign in a team uniform. The insiders asked Highsmith if he was nervous, but the edge rusher was very blunt about what everyone can except when it comes to Watt's future.
"No," Highsmith stated about not being worried. "I'm confident that — I'm confident that he's not going anywhere. It was a cool picture at the game, ain't going to lie, but I know that he loves being here. He loves being in Pittsburgh and the city of Pittsburgh loves him. I know they're going to do whatever they can to get a deal done; and so hopefully sooner than later because everyone knows he's a generational talent and generational player, and we all know he wants to be in this building."
Watt has kept a pretty low profile throughout the 2025 offseason after he and his wife, Dani, welcomed their first child. Highsmith would know better than most what could potentially be going on when it comes to Watt's future, so the fact that there aren't any worries coming from Highsmith should tell fans that a deal will end up getting done at some point.
Highsmith hit the nail on the head when talking about Watt being a generational talent and player. Even if he has gotten a little bit older, he is better at 30 than most edge rushers throughout the league are regardless of age. There could be some negotiations going on regarding the guaranteed money that Watt will receive, but no one should be expecting a deal to fall short and him to enter free agency in 2026.
Watt has yet to win a playoff game throughout his career, which seems almost unimaginable. He has performed at such an elite level and the team has been in the postseason conversation each year since he was drafted in 2017. Unfortunately, playoff success is what will be held against him when fans discuss some of the best defenders in the history of the organization.
Statistically, Watt stacks up with the best of them and still has several years left. As long as an extension gets done and he stays healthy, Watt will continue to set records and cement his legacy throughout the Steel City. The hope is that some playoff success will also be coming soon.
As Highsmith noted, a deal should get done and Watt will quickly be back to sacking quarterbacks on a weekly basis.
