Linebacker T.J. Watt won the Deacon Jones Award, presented during NFL Honors to the player who leads the NFL in sacks.
Watt led the NFL in sacks in 2023 with 19, the second highest of his career.
This is the third time Watt has won the award, previously doing so when he led the league in sacks in 2020 (15) and 2021 (22.5). He is the only player in NFL history to lead the league in sacks three times. Watt also became the seventh player since 1982 with at least 17 sacks in two of his first seven seasons.
Watt broke the Steelers all-time sack record during the 2023 season when he recorded his 81.5 career sack against the Cleveland Browns in Week 2 of the season, breaking the record set by James Harrison.
"It is special," said Watt at the end of the season about breaking the record. "This is the time where now I'm able to finally sit back, relax and realize how special this season was.
"But I just want to keep going. I really do. That's the first thing that comes to mind."
Watt currently holds the Steelers record with 96.5 career sacks, which is third-most in NFL history by a player in their first seven seasons in the NFL.
"He can still be better, which is crazy," said his older brother J.J. Watt, who retired at the end of the 2022 season after an amazing 12 years in the NFL. "Even just watching film. Now, we are talking about nitpicking at the highest level. These are things where it's like going from a 99 to a 100. It's one little thing. But that is the level he has put himself at where those are the types of things we are looking at on film and talk about."
Watt won the 101 Awards AFC Defensive Player of the Year for 2023, the third time in his career he won the honor. He previously won the honor in 2020 and 2021.
Watt was also selected a First Team Associated Press All-Pro for the fourth time in his career, selected to The Sporting News All-Pro team and named to the Pro Football Writers of America All-NFL and All-AFC teams.
In addition, Watt was voted to the Pro Bowl Games for the fifth time in his career, although he didn't take part because of his end of season injury, and was voted the Steelers 2023 MVP, the fourth time in his career he won that honor.
"He is a guy that loves the game for the game. He just loves the game of football," said safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. "A guy like that is going to be constantly learning, constantly growing, constantly trying to find ways to sharpen his weapon. He is a guy that always does that.
"The results that we see are because of the mentality that he has, the passion that he has for the game. I don't think there is anything that he can accomplish that will change the way he approaches his day-to-day."
The success Watt has doesn't come as a surprise to Steelers Coach Mike Tomlin, who thinks that Watt is just wired differently.
"Some people watch tape, some people study tape. And there's a difference," said Tomlin. "However you describe the spectrum, T.J. is on the extreme end of it from a preparedness standpoint. And that's one of the reasons why you get the production that you get from him beyond his freakish talent.
"He was always like that in mentality. I think the level of productivity from that endeavor grows with his experience, it gets more pointed, he wastes less time. I could just tell by the dialogue that he and I have and how it has matured over the years that his process is being honed to a fine edge."
