Linebacker T.J. Watt left Saturday's game against the Baltimore Ravens late in the third quarter with a knee injury, but before he suffered the injury his impact was felt all over the field.
So much so that Watt was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week for Week 18.
Watt finished the game with two sacks, finishing the season with an NFL leading 19 sacks for the year. Watt became the first player to lead the NFL in sacks three times, doing so in 2020, 2021 and 2023.
Watt also had eight tackles, six of them solo stops, and three tackles for a loss.
Watt finished the 2023 season ranked first in quarterback hits (36), tied for second in fumble recoveries (3), tied for fifth in forced fumbles (4) and fifth in tackles for a loss (19) in the NFL.
Watt ranked in the top five in the NFL in sacks, tackles for a loss, quarterback hits, forced fumbles and fumble recoveries for the second time in three years (2021, 2023). The only other player to accomplish that since 2012 is his older brother, J.J. Watt, who retired last season.
Watt was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Month for September this year, when he finished that month with six sacks, 11 tackles, nine of them solo stops, 12 quarterback hits, five tackles for a loss, two passes defensed, two forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries, including one he returned 16 yards for a touchdown.
This is the seventh time Watt has won the honor, previously doing so twice in 2018 (Weeks 1 and 5), once in 2020 (Week 2) and three times in 2021 (Weeks 6, 13 and 17).
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