First Call: T.J. Watt accused of dirty play and J.J. Watt responds; Pirates could 'surprise us by landing a solid free-agent bat'

There are some on the internet calling Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt a dirty player. His Hall Of Fame-bound big brother isn’t standing for that.

The Steelers worked out a former Cleveland Browns defensive lineman in advance of their matchup this weekend. The Pirates may be in the market to spend some money on offense this season. And Duquesne has local bragging rights over Pitt on the women’s basketball front.

All that in Thursday’s “First Call.”

Watt are you mad about?

Apparently, there are some folks on the internet who think that T.J. Watt tried to injure Joe Burrow on his strip sack of the Bengals quarterback Sunday afternoon.

The angst is over how Watt rolled while having Burrow in his grasp down by the ankles.

TJ Watt is an extremely dirty player.

pic.twitter.com/L4S9IzIfKQ

— NFL Notifications (@NFLNotify) December 2, 2024

Watt’s brother, CBS NFL analyst J.J. Watt, refuted that assessment on “The Pat McAfee Show” on Wednesday.

"There's some idiots out there and that's just the fact of life..

What TJ did is a perfect example of how you're taught to tackle..

If you want to cry about it that's your own problem" ~ @JJWatt #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/UfgFXG1iaM

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) December 4, 2024

I agree with Watt. His brother had no intent to injure Burrow. But Watt is not at all describing what happened on the play.

As the video shows, T.J. did not have Burrow at the “waist or upper legs.” He’s down around the ankles.

Granted, it looks like, initially, Watt tried to get Burrow around the waist or upper legs. That appeared to be his intent. However, he missed and rolled with the QB around his ankles because of the momentum of how he and Burrow were both going to the ground.

So, again, I think it’s silly to suggest Watt tried to injure Burrow. But let’s at least say what actually happened on the video we are all watching, J.J.

More sports

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• Pitt's Pat Narduzzi pleased with 2025 recruiting class, calls it 'a doozy'

An ex-Brown in town

The Steelers worked out former Cleveland Browns nose tackle Siaki Ika this week. That’s according to KPRC-TV’s Aaron Wilson.

Ika is 6-foot-3, 335 pounds. The former Baylor Bear was the Browns’ third-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. As a rookie last year, Ika played 100 snaps but didn’t register any stats.

The Steelers could certainly use depth at nose tackle, given some of Montravius Adams’ injury issues this year and their potential desire to have Keeanu Benton play off the nose more often in the base defense.

Mixed messages

The Pirates may be willing to spend some money for an impact bat this offseason. That’s according to The Athletic’s baseball insider Jim Bowden.

The former MLB general manager was asked in a recent mailbag Q&A if any small-market franchises would be interested in spending big money this offseason.

“The Nationals have been penny-pinching for the last several years, and I think they’ll start spending this offseason or at least try to. I also believe the Pirates might surprise us by landing a solid free-agent bat,” Bowden replied.

That’s encouraging for Pirates fans. However, Bowden was also asked if any National League Central teams would add a player who makes $20 million or more annually. Bowden said no to every team besides perhaps the Chicago Cubs.

OK, so how impactful of a bat are we really talking about then? What “solid free-agent” bat is going to come here for under $20 million that’s really going to make a difference?

Fangraphs has Arizona’s Christian Walker (.803 OPS), San Diego’s Jurickson Profar (.839 OPS) and Boston’s Tyler O’Neill (.847 OPS) all projected as players who may sign for under $20 million per year.

Personally, I’m skeptical that any of those guys would sign here for less than $20 million per year because my bet would be that they could get a similar offer in another city with a better chance of winning. But, yes, by Pirates standards, they’d all be significant upgrades to the lineup.

Dukes get it done

Duquesne’s women’s basketball team won the City Game over Pitt on Wednesday night by a final score of 73-67 at the Petersen Events Center. Jerni Kiaku led the way with 20 points.

Kiaku with ice in her veins????#GoDukes @jernikiaku pic.twitter.com/9ngqRqBRe5

— Duquesne Women's Basketball (@DuqWBB) December 5, 2024

Megan McConnell had 14. The Dukes improved to 5-2 overall this season and won its second straight game against the Panthers.

Meanwhile, Pitt dropped to 5-5. Their top scorer was Khadija Faye, who posted 23 points.

LISTEN: TribLive’s Kevin Gorman join me to talk Steelers, Pirates and the “Golden At-Bat.”