If former Dallas Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett could have a do-over, he’d use it on the 2017 NFL Draft. Infamously passing on then-Wisconsin pass rusher T.J. Watt for Michigan’s Taco Charlton, Garrett couldn’t help but express his regret after watching Watt torture another offense.
Ahead of Sunday night’s game between the Los Angeles Rams and Detroit Lions, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio spoke with Watt. And during that 2017 draft, Watt was convinced he was heading to Dallas.
“He told me, Coach Garrett, when the phone rang and the Steelers picked him seven years ago, he thought it was you,” Florio said on Football Night in America.
Which led Garrett to blurt out.
“We should’ve taken him, Florio!” Garrett said.
Dallas chose Charlton over Watt, believing the former’s larger size made him an ideal fit for the Cowboys’ 4-3 defense. In fairness, the decision was out of Garrett’s hands. That was made above him by front office exec Stephen Jones, who said DC Rod Marinelli didn’t view Watt as the right fit.
“Rod was concerned about how he’d hold up against the run in the 4-3 and didn’t have that same concern with Taco,” Jones told the Cowboys’ website in November 2020.
Charlton turned into a bust, spending just two seasons in Dallas and notching four sacks before being released. Charlton ended up becoming teammates with Watt in 2021, signed by the Steelers as a reserve pass rusher. He appeared in 11 games but lost playing time throughout the season. He last played in 2022 for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Now an analyst for NBC, Garrett gave Watt the credit he wished he had the foresight to see in 2017.
“He’s the most impactful defensive player there is in the National Football League,” Jason Garrett said of Watt. “I love the guy.”
So do the Steelers. And they’re holding onto him. Watt’s dominance continues not just in the regular season but specifically regular-season openers. Since being drafted, Watt has an NFL-leading 12 sacks, calling game with a takedown of QB Kirk Cousins Sunday afternoon. Had it not been for referee errors and unfortunate penalties, Watt would’ve had at least two more. All Garrett and the rest of the NFL can do is kick themselves for letting Pittsburgh pounce.
