Why you should be excited about first-round pick T.J. Watt:
-He was productive in his first season as a starting outside linebacker at Wisconsin, totaling 17 tackles for a loss and 11.5 sacks in 2016.
-His big-play resume includes a 17-yard interception return for a touchdown against Purdue.
-Since he's only started at outside linebacker for one season and has only been a defensive player for two seasons, Watt is far from a finished product. He still has an upside to glean through more experience at the position. "That's the exciting part about this," General Manager Kevin Colbert said.
-Watt (6-foot-4, 252 pounds) initially went to Wisconsin as a tight end and has been a quick study in is two-year transition to defense. "The first thing you notice, for a first-year (starting) linebacker, his ability to use his hands is advanced," Colbert said.
-Watt's already familiar with what the Steelers will ask him to do from a schematic standpoint. "I think the myriad of things they asked him to do within that scheme made it an easy evaluation," head coach Mike Tomlin said. "He'll come off the edge, you see him drop and cover people, you see him work out of a 'Rover' front where he's floating over or around the ball in a similar way that we ask our guys to play. All the things that he would be asked to do here, we've seen him do on Wisconsin tape and do very well."
-Watt has two brothers in the NFL, including three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year J.J. Watt. "His outlook regarding preparation and his mentality regarding training was that beyond a guy that was preparing for the draft," Tomlin said. "And I think that's the benefit of having older brothers that are National Football League players."
