TJ Watt’s cryptic post gets a deep dive analysis

TJ Watt’s Instagram fingers have spoken – or have they? That’s right, people are guessing what the message means, if anything at all.

What did TJ Watt post?

The Pittsburgh Steelers’ All-Pro linebacker posted (and swiftly deleted) an image of himself flashing two fingers. No caption. No explanation. Just two fingers held up in a way that looked suspiciously like a peace sign or maybe a victory sign. Perception could come down to your level of optimism... or paranoia.

Here’s the post (someone always gets it captured before the deletion!)

This is not Watt’s usual style. He’s not typically cryptic on social media. And when a face-of-the-franchise player entering the final year of a massive contract puts something out into the digital universe and then yanks it back… well, fans and analysts alike start squinting for clues.

Some immediately read it as a farewell: “peace out” to Pittsburgh after eight seasons, 108 sacks, and one Defensive Player of the Year trophy. Others took a more serene view: maybe Watt was expressing some kind of inner peace.

Are TJ Watt contract talks in trouble?

NFL insider Ian Rapoport weighed in, and while he reminded viewers that not all athlete posts are worthy of decoding, he couldn’t resist giving it a shot. His best guess: “contract negotiations are not going as well as anybody had hoped,” suggesting that if they were he’d probably have a picture with his thumbs up.

That checks out. Watt is entering the final season of a four-year, $112 million extension signed in 2021. He’s due $21.05 million in 2025, but no new deal has been inked yet – and there’s been zero public indication that one is close.

Watt is 30. The Steelers have a new-look front office. And while Watt remains elite – he had 11.5 sacks and led the league with six forced fumbles last year – the team could be hesitant to commit top-tier money to a player approaching the back half of his career.

Still, if negotiations really are stuck, then maybe the fingers weren’t saying “peace” or “peace out” – maybe they were counting down.

Two years left? Two weeks until a trade? Two million short of a deal? Your guess is as good as Ian’s.

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