TJ Watt’s Monster 4-Sack Night Propels Steelers to Win—Record Stats, Viral Highlights & What’s Next

T.J. Watt keeps piling up milestones in 2025, and the Pittsburgh Steelers superstar just added a family bragging right that reverberated across the NFL. With a second-quarter sack in Sunday’s win, the edge rusher surged past older brother J.J. Watt on the league’s all-time sack chart, becoming the new Watt family leader and cracking the top tier of NFL pass rushers in the process. Sibling rivalry immediately went viral. Retired three-time Defensive Player of the Year J.J. jokingly threatened to “put the pads back on” so he could chase his kid brother again, a lighthearted tweet that lit up social media and sports talk shows alike. Beyond the record books, T.J. Watt’s dominance is the lifeline of a Steelers defense searching for consistency. “We need to be better quickly,” he warned after Week 12, pointing to lulls that have forced the unit to live and die by turnovers rather than sustained stops. Head coach Mike Tomlin echoed the urgency as Pittsburgh claws for playoff positioning in a crowded AFC. The next test comes in Buffalo, where the Bills have suddenly lost both starting offensive tackles to injury just days before facing Watt’s relentless rush. Josh Allen has been sacked 29 times already this season, and the shuffle up front could turn Highmark Stadium into Watt’s personal playground. League-wide, Watt’s torrid production looms over another pass-rush storyline: Myles Garrett’s pursuit of the single-season sack record Watt set in 2021. The Browns star sits at 18 sacks through 12 games and is “on pace to obliterate” the mark if he maintains his current clip. The friendly rivalry fuels headlines, but Watt says he is more focused on wins than numbers—a mantra that plays well in every locker-room speech. Key Takeaways for Steelers Fans and Fantasy Managers: • T.J. Watt now leads his family and ranks among the top active sack artists, strengthening his Defensive Player of the Year candidacy. • Pittsburgh’s defense still hinges on takeaways; improved third-down consistency would unlock championship potential. • Buffalo’s depleted line creates a prime spot-start for the Steelers DST and an elevated sack outlook for Watt in Week 13. • The AFC North’s arms race between Watt and Garrett adds national intrigue to every divisional snap. With the calendar turning to December, every sack, strip, and splash play carries postseason weight. If T.J. Watt keeps rewriting the record books—and reminding his big brother who rules the family leaderboard—traffic to Steelers Nation will only get louder.