On the first play from scrimmage of Pittsburgh’s Week 14 loss to the New England Patriots, T.J. Watt took a massive blow to the face while making a tackle on running back Zeke Elliott.
Watt was in and out of the lineup as trainers checked his mouth and jaw. Later in the game, he went into the medical tent with the NFL’s concussion observer but was never diagnosed.
He reported symptoms upon arriving at the Steelers facility on Friday, and both he and Alex Highsmith were placed in concussion protocol.
He returned to the field wearing a tinted visor instead of the clear one he typically wears.
Tomlin played dumb when asked about why he switched visors. “I wasn’t aware of that to be honest with you, so I don’t have a response to that,” he said during his Monday press conference. “I wasn’t aware that he changed visors or… he normally wears a visor. You mean the tint of his visor was different? Yeah, I wasn’t aware of that.”
There’s absolutely no way Tomlin was unaware of the tinted visor, and if he was, he’s far more disconnected from this team than it already appears.
The NFL has not announced if it will investigate whether Pittsburgh mishandled the concussion protocol process. But Tomlin pretending to have no idea of the step taken for Watt’s “migraine” further shines a spotlight on the already suspicious situation.
