Bills, Commanders, and Lions Floated As Potential Trade Destinations For 6-Time All-Pro Game-Wrecker

The idea of T.J. Watt playing anywhere but Pittsburgh feels almost impossible to imagine. Watt has been the face of the Steelers’ defense for nearly a decade — a relentless, game-wrecking force who embodies everything about the team’s hard-nosed identity. But as NFL teams begin looking ahead to the 2025 offseason, there is growing speculation that Watt’s time in the Black and Gold could be winding down.

While the Steelers have remained quiet about Watt’s future, the lack of public contract chatter — combined with the rising cost of elite pass rushers — has opened the door for trade rumors to surface. In a recent feature identifying one veteran each NFL team could trade, PFSN analyst Sterling Xie named Watt as Pittsburgh’s most intriguing (and possibly expendable) trade chip. And he didn’t stop there. Xie floated three contending teams — the Buffalo Bills, Detroit Lions, and Washington Commanders — as potential landing spots if the Steelers decide to shake things up in 2025.

Could Pittsburgh Steelers Actually Trade T.J. Watt?

“Is there really any chance the Steelers will move on from a franchise icon and still-elite player?” Xie asked in the April 18 article. It’s a fair question, especially given that Watt is still producing at a high level. Despite turning 30 last October, Watt posted 11.5 sacks in 2024 and appeared in all 17 games. Still, there are signs of wear: His pressure rate dipped to a career low of 9.9%, a noticeable drop from his previous floor of 11.1%, which, as Xie noted, occurred when he was playing with a torn pec.

From a contract standpoint, things are getting tricky. Watt’s four-year, $112 million extension — signed in 2021 — expires after the 2025 season. With recent deals for Myles Garrett and Maxx Crosby pushing the market beyond $40 million annually, re-signing Watt likely means committing top dollar to a player entering his age-31 season. “Purely from a value perspective, it’s not obvious that Watt should get that deal,” Xie wrote.

Xie believes that if the Steelers do consider moving on, “all 31 teams should call,” but the Bills, Lions, and Commanders stand out as teams that should be first in line. Each has playoff aspirations and a clear need at edge rusher. The Bills lost Leonard Floyd in free agency and are looking to retool around aging veteran Von Miller. The Lions are building a nasty defensive line around Aidan Hutchinson but lack consistent pass rush on the opposite side. And the Commanders, a surprise playoff contender in 2024, are aggressively reshaping their roster.

Still, any deal would be massive. “The Steelers would be looking for (and should probably receive) multiple first-round picks for any blockbuster Watt deal,” Xie noted.

For now, Watt is still a Steeler. But unless an extension is quietly in the works, these trade whispers could get a lot louder — especially if Pittsburgh starts slowly in 2025 or leans into a youth movement around Nick Herbig.