The Pittsburgh Steelers are at a crossroads.

Stick with the status quo, and be content with 10-7 and first-round playoff losses, or pull the plug and start a new era.

If they decide to go with the latter, it could mean the end of T.J. Watt in Black & Gold.

T.J. Watt Offseason Trade Candidate?

Watt might still be in the prime of his career but heading into the final year of his contract and age 31 season, if the Steelers really want to rebuild they will need draft capital and Watt will far and away fetch that capital.

And look, should Watt be a Steeler for life? Sure. But at some point, when does the best defensive player in the league and maybe the history of the franchise say enough is enough and go look for a playoff win?

That’s not to say Watt would demand a trade, and the Steelers would be wrong to just trade him away without consulting with him. But if Mike Tomlin could fetch a top-10 pick on the open market, what would Watt garner?

“You know what the Chicago Bears would do for Mike Tomlin? Would you part ways with your top 10 pick? I would sure think long and hard about it,” said former NFL Scout John Middlekauff on his 3 & Out podcast. “Because these five and six-win seasons, no matter how much talent you have, suck. And the one thing you know, Mike basically guarantees you, (which is no longer good enough for the Steelers) winning 9-10 games and never going under 500. You know what the Chicago Bears would do to just every year go 10-7? So would they trade their first round pick? I would, I mean, I would immediately.”

So look, the odds that Watt is any team other than the Steelers in 205 and beyond? Slim to none. But if Art Rooney is going to stay true to his word and get the team back to their winning ways, he’s going to have to pull out all the stops.