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The Pittsburgh Steelers have been at a crossroads for some time now, but have managed to stay there without making a real decision on what direction for the better part of three years. They went from being one of the worst offenses in the NFL but still winning games against lesser oppoents of the strength of their defense to that same defense growing older and performing worse despite being the most expensive unit in the NFL.
With that said, there should be major changes made to the defense now that Mike Tomlin is no longer the head coach and a new era is being ushered in. One of those moves (albeit two years after it should have happened) would be to trade T.J. Watt.
The five-time All-Pro has just 18.5 sacks over the last two seasons after putting up 19 in 2023. Of course, age takes its toll on everyone, but the Steelers need to get something in exchange for him while they still can, and multiple suitors would likely throw their respective hats in the ring – specifically these five.
Pittsburgh would likely prefer to trade Watt to an NFC team, and Washington would be one of my top squads to watch should a move actually be made. They have no pass rushers that strike any sort of fear into offenses, and they could do with extra draft picks.
While the price for Watt has been labeled as a second-round pick by Ray Fittipaldo, the Steelers packaging Watt with the No. 21 pick and one of their Day Three picks to move up to No. 7 in the draft would make the most sense for both teams, especially because the Commanders don’t have a second-round pick in this year’s draft. Should a move happen post-draft, i.e. the George Pickens trade, then a 2027 second-round pick would do just fine.
It feels like an unfortunate yearly occurrence that the 49ers get beaten to death with injuries, and 2025 was no different. They lost both Nick Bosa and Fred Warner to season-ending injuries on the defensive side of the ball. And while they made it to the divisional round, they were completely outmatched by the Seattle Seahawks in a 41-6 loss. There are only so many cracks that this group will have at getting to the Super Bowl, and forming a duo of two former Defensive Player of the Year winners off the edge would certainly keep them near the top of the NFC.
The Bills took a swing at an aging edge rusher back in 2022 when they signed Von Miller. It looked as if that was going to be a tremendous signing for about half a season before Miller tore his ACL on Thanksgiving that season. After another disappointing playoff loss that led to a head coaching change of their own, general manager Brandon Beane needs to get aggressive to get as much proven talent on the roster as possible. Putting Watt alongside Greg Rousseau with Michael Hoecht rotating in would give Buffalo a very nice trio.
We all know Jerry Jones would do it. And honestly, more power to him if he can turn Micah Parsons into Kenny Clark, Quinnen Williams, multiple first-round picks, and T.J. Watt. The Cowboys’ defense was a disaster in 2025. Landing Watt, along with another reliable edge rusher, would give them one of the best front fours in the NFL.
If Watt were to go on the market, the Wisconsin native would almost certainly be on board with a trade to the Packers. Financially, the team would have to do some restructures to contracts to make it work, but we know those things can be done. A duo of Watt and Micah Parsons would also be pure chaos.
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