A couple of Pittsburgh’s unofficial rules of contract engagement are making the T.J. Watt negotiations more interesting than they otherwise would be.
First, the Steelers don’t do player contracts once the season begins. Thus, either Watt and the team find a consensus in the coming days or the plug gets pulled and Watt gets paid $10.1 million for 2021, lugging the injury risk through a 17-game regular season.
Second, the Steelers don’t fully guarantee payments beyond the first year of a veteran deal. They’ll give a player a huge signing bonus to account for that, but they don’t agree to guaranteed payments for injury, skill, and cap in the second year and beyond.