Everyone in Pittsburgh knows the intensity of the Steelers-Ravens rivalry. But few have real insight into how a player might get himself ready to go into the game itself. And so a few neighbors of Pittsburgh’s Defensive Player of the Year candidate, T.J. Watt, can consider themselves the lucky ones coming out of last week.
For the balance of that time, Watt had no idea whether he’d actually be able to strap it up at Heinz Field on Sunday. He’d tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday, and the way it’s played out this year, most players who do test positive wind up missing at least one game, with many going through the full 10 days of testing before being cleared.