The NFL's sack race entering Week 6 features a three-way tie atop the leaderboard and brotherly love.
With six sacks each on the season, Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt and Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker T.J. Watt are tied with Cincinnati Bengals defensive tackle Geno Atkins for first.
The significance of the achievement isn't lost on the Watt brothers.
"It's pretty wild when you go and you look at the sack sheet and you see our names next to each other," J.J. told reporters Wednesday, via the Texans' official website. "We used to beat up on each other in [the] backyard and now we get to see our names at the top of the NFL sack charts. So, it's incredible and I'm lucky. I have two incredible brothers [T.J. and Los Angeles Chargers fullback Derek Watt] and I'm very fortunate."
T.J. echoed his older brother when asked Wednesday about the sacks leaderboard.
"It's healthy competition and I'm just really happy to see both my brothers out there playing on Sundays," T.J. said, via ESPN. "It's something I'll never take for granted is to be able to sit on the couch and watch them play. It's pretty special."
The Steelers' outside linebacker also put the numbers in perspective, pointing out the season is still young as the league enters Week 6 and there's still plenty of room for him to improve.
"I'm always the guy that just keeps striving to get better each and every week, and you can't get caught up in any of the statistical things," T.J. said. "So, I'm sure my mom thinks it's a lot cooler than I do."
Still, seeing two brothers jockeying for position atop the sack leaderboard offers plenty of reasons to monitor the race every week.
The league is fully aware of what J.J. can do on the field. The four-time All-Pro and three-time Defensive Player of the Year was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Month after totaling 20 tackles, five sacks, eight quarterback hits and four forced fumbles in September.
T.J., however, is coming into his own in his second season and, on Wednesday, collected his second AFC Defensive Player of the Week on the season following a three-sack performance in Week 5.
While the Watt brothers are currently in a three-way tie for the lead in sacks, the Texans' defensive end has some bragging rights.
"I think today he got his second AFC Player of the Week or whatever, but, I mean, I got the Player of the Month last month," J.J. told reporters with a grin. "So, I think that's a little cooler."
