Historically speaking, there have been several players who have experienced plenty of success against the Las Vegas Raiders. By that same token, the Silver and Black have enjoyed similar dominance against others; that's how it goes in the NFL.
However, it was rather revealing to see just how dominant one player from the Pittsburgh Steelers has been against the Raiders in the last few years. I'll give fans a guess: he's part of a dynamic pair of brothers, and no, he's not from the Bosa family.
It's T.J. Watt, of course.
T.J. Watt has been Raiders' Achilles' heel since 2020
As fans await training camp, Pro Football Focus' Dalton Wasserman took a deep dive into individual players and how they have fared against certain squads. For the Raiders, it is Watt who has wreaked havoc over the past four seasons.
"Watt has faced the Raiders once in each of the past four seasons and played his usual brand of all-around dominant football," Wasserman wrote. "His 84.8 PFF pass-rush grade and 17.9% pass-rush win rate in those matchups are certainly impressive, but his work in the run game elevated him onto this list."
Given the historic rivalry between these two organizations, it is not surprising that the player who has given the Raiders the most headaches is a Steeler. Wasserman also touched on the fact, however, that it was not just pass-rush prowess that earned Watt this distinction.
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"In those four games, Watt recorded a ridiculous 96.0 PFF run-defense grade.. That’s partially buoyed by his most recent effort in Week 6 of 2024, when he forced two fumbles en route to a 99.0 PFF run-defense grade," Wasserman added.
Fans around the league know very well that Watt has been an absolute stud since coming into the NFL. Following in the footsteps of his older brother, J.J. Watt, the former No. 30 overall selection has amassed 108.0 career sacks along with an eye-popping 126 tackles for a loss.
To say he's disruptive is putting it mildly, and as PFF's Dalton Wasserman pointed out above, his dominance versus the Raiders is astonishing. Whether he's stuffing the run or powering through blockers, the Raiders have felt his sting for quite some time.
While not comforting for Raider Nation, it's worth noting that Watt is just 30 years old and has been relatively healthy the last couple of years. In other words, Watt isn't going anywhere, and unless the Raiders' defensive brain trust of Pete Carroll and Patrick Graham strategize differently next time they play, it'll be more of the same.