Steelers LB T.J. Watt ‘excited’ for opener vs. 49ers

The offseason is almost officially over for the Pittsburgh Steelers as they inch closer to Sunday’s season opener against the San Francisco 49ers.

There might not be many more excited than linebacker T.J. Watt, who enters the year healthy and ready to prove himself. He also hopes to showcase the new and improved work the linebackers have made this offseason.

“Communication has been awesome. It’s been great,” Watt said via the team’s website. “It’s one of those points of emphasis right when we got here, when we got the new guys in the inside backer’s room. E-Rob (Elandon Roberts) has been making it a point of getting up in our ears, making sure we know what the call is, doing a great job of dealing with the crowd noise all week.

“I am excited to show everybody what we have been doing.”

Elandon Roberts, Cole Holcomb and Kwon Alexander are all new additions to the inside linebacker room, which has forced the Steelers to make some small adjustments. However, all three have been proven starters before they got to Pittsburgh and are capable of making the moves necessary to pull out a successful season.

The inside linebackers will be tasked with being the main communicator on defense, which could be a concern for the Steelers as new blood comes in. However, there’s belief that the newbies can fit right in.

The Steelers host the 49ers Sunday with kickoff at 1 p.m. at Acrisure Stadium.