‘Maybe Hard Knocks Will Get Something Out Of Him:’ T.J. Watt Says Danny Smith Keeps Special Teams Room ‘Private’

While Pittsburgh Steelers special teams coach Danny Smith is the talk of the town with his unit having blocked a kick or a punt in three straight games, his players aren’t going to give you too much information about him. Speaking to the media Saturday, Steelers OLB T.J. Watt was asked for a favorite Smith story.

“None that I’m gonna share. He likes to keep his room pretty private. Maybe Hard Knocks will get something out of him,” Watt said via Steelers.com.

Hard Knocks will cover the last six weeks of the season for every AFC North team, and given how Pittsburgh’s special teams has played this season, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Smith got some screen time. He makes for a great TV personality, always chomping on bubble gum and he’s got some great stories to tell, but the inner workings of the room are something that Smith is going to keep private, and rightfully so.

It’ll be interesting to see how much access Hard Knocks winds up getting in the Steelers’ building. As a whole it’s an organization that likes to keep things in-house and the Steelers might try to curate just how much will be shown on Hard Knocks. It’ll be fun to watch as Steelers fans, as you’ll get to see inside the organization in a way that we haven’t before.

Obviously, the Hard Knocks cameras won’t show us everything, and I doubt they’ll be able to get a lot out of Smith. But watching the AFC North race play out from each team’s perspective is going to be interesting to watch, and maybe we’ll get a few insights from Pittsburgh’s staff into how things have unfolded this season. It’s certainly been a season full of storylines, from the success of special teams and Smith’s room stepping up to the plate to the quarterback room, with Justin Fields starting the season after Russell Wilson’s injury and then Wilson stepping in to replace him in Week 7.

Most of the season’s story hasn’t quite been written yet, so it will be cool to see it play out in real time and watch it back on Hard Knocks (unless things take a nosedive late in the year). And maybe the HBO show will be able to get some information out of Smith that his players won’t give up.