HEADLINES

Calvin Austin III

Steelers Designate OLB T.J. Watt For Return; WR Calvin Austin’s IR-Return Window Closes

October 26th, 2022 at 3:46pm CST by Sam Robinson

T.J. Watt has run into multiple injuries since the season began. A pectoral issue in Week 1 initially put the reigning Defensive Player of the Year’s season in jeopardy, and a subsequent knee surgery lengthened his recovery timetable. But Watt took another step on the road back Wednesday.

The Steelers opened Watt’s practice window, designating him to return from IR. Pittsburgh has three weeks to activate Watt. Not doing so would result in the perennial All-Pro missing the rest of the season.

The latter outcome will take place for Calvin Austin. Pittsburgh has let the fourth-round rookie’s designated-for-return window close without an activation. Austin sustained a foot injury in August, and the Steelers will give him a full season to heal. He reverts to season-ending IR.

Hopes of a potential Week 6 Watt return ended up being too optimistic, with the knee surgery changing his recovery outlook. But Watt returning to practice now will be a nice benefit to the Steelers. The team has a Week 9 bye, so it would not surprise if Watt is held out until Week 10. But the sixth-year outside linebacker can be activated at any point in the next three weeks. The Steelers have not used any of their injury activations yet. Austin’s shutdown increases Pittsburgh’s flexibility over the season’s final three months.

Watt, 28, is building a Hall of Fame resume. While he may not have solidified first-ballot Canton status like J.J. Watt just yet, the youngest of the NFL’s Watt brothers has earned first-team All-Pro recognition in each of the past three seasons. T.J.’s 52 sacks from 2019-21 are on another level from the rest of the league; Aaron Donald‘s 38.5 sit second in that span.

A Ravens draft target as well, Austin totaled back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons at Memphis. The Steelers, who have established a long-running track record of wide receiver development, took Austin despite drafting George Pickens two rounds earlier. While Wednesday’s news represents a setback, the 162-pound rookie’s progress in Pittsburgh’s offense will be worth monitoring in 2023.

Steelers Move WR Calvin Austin, S Damontae Kazee To IR

September 1st, 2022 at 2:10pm CST by Sam Robinson

One of the two rookie wideouts the Steelers drafted this year will not start the season on time. Calvin Austin III joins safety Damontae Kazee in being moved to IR ahead of Week 1.

Because Pittsburgh carried both through to IR following Tuesday’s roster cut, each can return after four games. The NFL both increased the IR-return timetable from three games to four this season and, after unlimited IR comebacks could ensue in 2020 and 2021, limited players coming off IR to eight this year.

With Austin and Kazee shifting off the roster for the first four weeks, the Steelers re-signed linebacker Marcus Allen and offensive lineman Trent Scott. Allen has been with the team since 2018, while Scott — a Panthers spot starter over the past two seasons — initially caught on with Pittsburgh in May.

After flashing this offseason, Austin sustained a foot injury that has forced him to miss time. The Steelers took the Memphis in the fourth round (138th overall), doing so just before the Ravens planned to select him. The Austin pick came two rounds after Pittsburgh selected George Pickens. Pittsburgh’s second-rounder is expected to join Diontae Johnson and Chase Claypool as the team’s top receivers. The Steelers, as they are wont to do, reloaded in the draft at the position — after letting JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Washington walk in free agency.

The Steelers had prepared to place Kazee on IR since his injury in their preseason finale. A 15-game Cowboys starter last season, Kazee is expected to miss extensive time due to a wrist injury. The Steelers placed safety Karl Joseph on IR before the season, but because they waited until after setting their roster to shift Kazee to the injured list, the latter is eligible to return during the year.