Pittsburgh Steelers pass rusher T.J. Watt is recovering from surgery to repair a partially collapsed lung, his brother J.J. Watt posted Friday on social media.
According to J.J. Watt, the Steelers’ star linebacker sustained the injury during a dry needling session Wednesday at the team’s practice facility.
“Recovery timeline is still TBD, but all went well and he is being released from the hospital today,” J.J. Watt wrote on X. “He and his family are very appreciative of everyone’s kind words and well wishes.”
The team confirmed that the three-time NFL sacks leader had to be hospitalized on Wednesday. He underwent the surgical procedure on Thursday.
Dry needling is a procedure used to increase blood flow and raise oxygen levels in overused and sore muscles.
Head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters on Thursday that Watt’s availability for Monday night’s game between the AFC North-leading Steelers (7-6) and visiting Miami Dolphins (6-7) will be determined later.
Signed to a three-year, $123 million contract with $108 million guaranteed in July, Watt has recorded seven sacks and 53 tackles in 13 games (all starts) this season. The seven-time Pro Bowl selection has not missed a game since the 2022 season.
Watt, 31, has 115 career sacks in 134 games (all starts) since being selected by Pittsburgh with the 30th overall pick of the 2017 NFL Draft. He was the NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 2021 when he had a career-high 22.5 sacks to match the official league record (since 1982) held by Michael Strahan.
