Steelers star T.J. Watt likely to play against Ravens

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Alex Highsmith (56) celebrates a sack during the second half of an NFL football game against the Las Vegas Raiders in Pittsburgh, Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - T.J. Watt is hopeful his ankle injury won't keep him from trying to help the Pittsburgh Steelers win the AFC North title on Saturday in Baltimore.

The star outside linebacker was a full participant in practice on Thursday and seems to be trending toward playing when the Steelers (10-4) attempt to sweep the season series from the Ravens (9-5) and lock up their first division title since 2020. Pittsburgh did not even give Watt an injury designation when the game report was released on Thursday afternoon.

“Obviously it's a short week, but I felt pretty good,” Watt said.

The perennial All-Pro tweaked his left ankle late in the fourth quarter of a 27-13 loss to Philadelphia on Sunday. Watt was chasing after Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts with around four minutes to play when his left foot bent awkwardly underneath him.

Watt said afterward that he was in “wait and see” mode but sounded upbeat on Thursday, about 48 hours before before the middle game in a grueling 11-day stretch in which the Steelers play three times.

“There’s not a lot of things you do on practice in a short week like this to push it,” Watt said. “So I want to see how it feels on Saturday, but I feel pretty good right now.”

Pittsburgh certainly could use him in the lineup. The Steelers are 1-10 in Watt's eight-year career when he is unavailable.

Watt pointed out “at this point in the year, everybody's dealing with stuff, so if I can go I'll go and we'll go from there."

While Watt and the Steelers are accustomed to be being at the mercy of the NFL schedule makers - Pittsburgh is playing on five days' rest instead of the normal six because it is also hosting Kansas City on Christmas Day - he demurred when asked if he was frustrated that he's being forced to deal with an injury during a truncated portion of season.

“I think other guys are obviously having to do it too,” said Watt, alluding to the fact the Ravens, Chiefs and Texans are all on the same timeline of playing Saturday and again on Christmas. “But like I said ... I don’t think it matters to weigh in honestly.”

While Watt's No. 90 has a pretty strong chance to be on the field in Baltimore, the Steelers will be without top wide receiver George Pickens and possibly safety DeShon Elliott.

Pickens will miss his third straight game with a hamstring injury, while Elliott is likely to miss his second consecutive game with a hamstring issue.

Backup quarterback Justin Fields (abdominal) is also out. Cornerback Donte Jackson (back) and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi are both questionable.