TJ Watt joined elite company Sunday afternoon, sparking an emotional tribute from his legendary brother, JJ Watt.
The younger of the Watt brothers picked up his 88.0 career sack on Sunday afternoon, against Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers, tying him with JJ as the second-most prolific pass-rusher through his first 100 games.
Both Watts, though, trail by the late Hall of Famer Reggie White for the all-time record, of 105, which seemed to really put things in perspective for JJ.
We grew up in Wisconsin, idolizing Reggie White.
If you told us that someday a stat like this would exist, we wouldn?t believe you.
Pretty damn cool.
— JJ Watt (@JJWatt) November 12, 2023
White is widely considered one of the premier defensive players in the history of the sport.
Nicknamed the 'Minister of Defense,' White terrorized quarterbacks during his career with the Philadelphia Eagles, Green Bay Packers, and Carolina Panthers, where he compiled 198 sacks — two shy of Bruce Smith's all-time record — en route to a Super Bowl championship, two Defensive Player of The Year awards, and eight First-Team All-Pro selections before being enshrined posthumously into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2006.
There is a good chance that potentially as early as 2028 JJ Watt's bust will reside in Canton, Ohio, alongside White's as the former Houston Texan and Arizona Cardinal capped his career with 114.5 sacks in this 115-game career, which is good for 34th all-time.
Meanwhile, TJ, chosen in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers, is already following in his brother's footsteps. The 2021 Defensive Player of The Year, TJ Watt is a three-time First-Team All-Pro selection and is playing his way into the conversation for a second Defensive Player of The Year award of his career.
Through the Steelers' first nine games of this season, Watt has produced 9.5 sacks with one interception, as a centerpiece of Pittsburgh's menacing front-seven that has largely powered a 5-3 start in the ultra-competitive AFC North division.
With 3:00 remaining in the third quarter on Sunday, the Steelers trailed the Packers 19-17.
