Steelers’ TJ Watt jokes ‘lesser athlete’ would’ve been injured after viral pool slip

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end T.J. Watt is still laughing at himself days after posting a video of himself accidentally falling into his pool, a video he says friends encouraged him to share on social media. 

Following OTAs on Thursday, reporters could not help but ask Watt about the video that showed him falling into his family pool after he seemingly misjudged how far the ledge extended out. 

“I don’t know how I missed the step but I did and a lesser athlete would’ve got hurt,” Watt said with a laugh. 

STEELERS STAR T.J. WATT LAUGHS AT HIMSELF AFTER HILARIOUSLY FALLING INTO POOL

In the video, Watt’s dog seems unmoved by his owner’s fall, but the five-time Pro Bowler addressed the cause of his dog’s lack of concern. 

“I was very calm. I’m happy about myself being calm. The dog didn’t react how I wanted him to, but that’s because I yelled at him two minutes before that because he was digging into some mud so that’s the background of that story.” 

Watt said he received several messages after posting the video from those who were concerned about any potential injuries but said the only reason he shared it online was because he was not actually hurt. 

“Too many, too many. The only reason why I posted it was because I wasn’t hurt. It was all in good fun and I put it in the group chat, and they were like ‘It’s too funny not to post. You might as well just post it.’” 

Watt is entering his seventh season in the NFL, all with the Steelers. He has totaled 77.5 sacks and led the league in 2020 and 2021 with 15 and 22.5, respectively. 

He dealt with injuries last season that saw him miss seven games. 

Fox News’ Scott Thompson contributed to this report.