A TALE OF ONE SUPER STREET
While several years separated Stefen Wisniewski and Justin Watson growing up, the distance was actually only several houses on a street that helped shape them both. It is in some way a contributing reason why next Sunday their only separation will be a patch of Florida Gulf Coast grass that will determine this year’s Super Bowl champion.
The chances of an athlete from a small town playing in the Super Bowl are astronomical. But how about two players from the same small town — who lived on the same street? There will be a lot of stories written in the days leading up to Super Bowl LV between the Chiefs and Buccaneers, but none will be as unlikely as neighbors Stefen Wisniewski and Justin Watson competing for the Lombardi trophy Sunday night at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.
Wisniewski, an offensive lineman for the Chiefs, and Watson, a receiver for the Buccaneers, grew up together on Woodcreek Drive in South Fayette, a township of nearly 16,000 residents in southern Allegheny County. They lived three doors down and across the street from each other.
“It’s hard to fathom,” said Doug Watson, Justin’s father. “I can’t imagine this has ever happened before.”
Wisniewski and Watson are separated by seven years, but the families are bonded by their community and their strong Christian faith. Even though Stefen transferred to Central Catholic after his freshman season at South Fayette, he was a role model for Justin in more ways than one.
Woodcreek Drive is a side street off Hickory Grade Road, a steep incline that ascends all the way from Route 50 to the top of the aptly named Alpine Road. The mountainous terrain turned out to be a perfect training spot for two aspiring young athletes.
“I remember looking up to Stefen a lot,” Watson said. “I remember being 10 years old and Stefen was a senior at Central Catholic. He used to run this hill in front of his house. His dad would be there with a stopwatch timing him. When I got older, I would run the hill. When I go home now, I still run that hill.”
“I remember Justin as a boy watching us,” said Stefen’s father, Leo Wisniewski. “You don’t have any sense at the time what a young man is taking in and using to inspire him. He was a really nice kid, quiet. To see him develop over the years was pretty amazing. Justin has an incredible work ethic.”
Wisniewski has strong NFL bloodlines. Leo was a defensive lineman at Penn State and played three years in the NFL for the Colts from 1982-84. His uncle, Steve Wisniewski, was an offensive lineman at Penn State and played for the Raiders from 1989-2001, twice being named firstteam All-Pro.
Stefen won a WPIAL and PIAA championship at Central Catholic and earned U.S. Army All-American honors as well as first-team all-state honors before accepting a scholarship to Penn State. He was selected in the second round of the 2011 draft and has played a decade in the league.
Whereas Stefen’s path to the NFL seemed destined, Watson’s was much less certain. He showed up at South Fayette as a gangly freshman and did not make a good first impression. His first target, a post route in a preseason scrimmage, bounced off his helmet, earning him the moniker “No Hands” Watson from an assistant coach.
Watson played in the shadow of Zach Challingsworth, another South Fayette receiver a year ahead of Watson who would earn a scholarship to Pitt. It wasn’t until a breakout senior season when South Fayette repeated as WPIAL and PIAA champions that Watson turned up on the radar of colleges.
Before that, Doug Watson remembered, his hope was for Justin to maybe play Division III football at a school like CMU or Denison.
“I’ll never forget calling his parents and telling them about his first scholarship offer,” South Fayette coach Joe Rossi said. “It was from Bucknell, and his mom was like, ‘A full scholarship?’”
Watson eventually settled on playing at Penn, where he was first-team allIvy League three times and blossomed into an NFL prospect.
“He wasn’t even a 3-star prospect coming out of high school,” Rossi said. “He worked his tail off to get where he is.”
The journey to SB LV
The Buccaneers selected Watson in the fifth round of the 2018 draft, and he has played in 39 games the past three seasons. He caught his first career touchdown pass in December 2019 from Jameis Winston and this season caught seven passes from six-time Super Bowlwinning quarterback Tom Brady, who is in his first season with the Buccaneers after spending his first 20 seasons with the Patriots.
The same Tom Brady who beat the Steelers in the 2001 AFC championship at Heinz Field before he earned his first Super Bowl ring. Justin was 5 at that time, and like a lot of kindergartners in and around Pittsburgh at the time, was heartbroken.
“I remember all of those games,” Watson said. “Tom Brady in the playoffs, it seemed like that’s where the Steelers’ season always ended.”
Now he’s 24 and catching passes from Brady, who is gunning for a seventh ring at the ripe old age of 43.
Watson was part of some secret workouts Brady orchestrated at Berkeley Preparatory School in Tampa last summer. The workouts drew some headlines due to COVID-19 health concerns, but they served Watson well. He made starts against the Panthers and Chargers early in the season and caught six passes for 88 yards in those contests, both victories.
“He’s a superstar, but he’s kind of under-the-radar,” Watson said. “It’s been unbelievable to watch him and see him as a leader. He was such a cool guy teaching us. And throughout the year, you would always hear him talk about November football, December football, January football. Everything was building to that moment. You could see him get more comfortable as the games got bigger.”
Watson’s role was reduced once Antonio Brown was signed and became part of the offense, but he has settled into a job as a strong special-teams player. He played 17 snaps on special teams in the Buccaneers’ victory against the Packers in the NFC title game.
Watson also is learning from some former Steelers he grew up watching. Former Steelers offensive coordinator Bruce Arians is the head coach of the Buccaneers. Former Steelers quarterback Byron Leftwich is the offensive coordinator, and former receiver Antwaan Randle El is an assistant receivers coach.
“You always want to learn from great coaches, but when it’s someone you grew up watching. that makes it special,” Watson said. “I saw Randle El make a big play in the Super Bowl. There’s just a trust level there.”
While Watson will be competing in his first Super Bowl, Wisniewski will be playing in his third in the past four years. He won his first Super Bowl when the Eagles beat the Patriots after the 2017 season. He won again last season after he signed on with the Chiefs midway through the season after being out of the league.
After the Chiefs beat the 49ers in Super Bowl LIV, Wisniewski signed as a free agent with the Steelers, the team he grew up rooting for.
Wisniewski started the season opener against the Giants when David DeCastro was injured but strained his pectoral muscle late in the game and went on injured reserve. The Steelers activated Wisniewski from injured reserve in October, but they released him three days later.
The Chiefs again scooped him up, and he’s in line to make another start in the Super Bowl.
Wisniewski came off the bench to play right guard after Chiefs offensive lineman Eric Fisher injured his Achilles’ late in the AFC title game against the Bills. The Chiefs are likely to stick with the same lineup for the Super Bowl.
“It’s pretty amazing,” Leo Wisniewski said. “It’s been quite a run for him. We kid him that his wife has been his good luck charm.”
Since marrying Hilary Ford before the 2017 season Wisniewski’s luck has changed for the better. Hilary also is a native of South Fayette and played on the soccer team at South Fayette High School with Sarah Wisniewski, Stefen’s younger sister.
Giving back
Wisniewski and Watson remain active in the South Fayette community. Leo Wisniewski is the executive director for Locking Arms Men, a men’s ministry in Pittsburgh. Doug Watson taught CCD at Holy Child Church in Bridgeville for many years.
Their faith has brought them together over the years, even after Wisniewski embarked on his NFL career.
In 2014, Stefen returned home to present Justin with an award at the Fellowship of Christian Athletes event at the Crown Plaza hotel. Stefen played for the Raiders at the time, and Watson was a senior at South Fayette. A few years later, when Justin was at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia and Stefen played for the Eagles, they met up at another FCA event where Wisniewski spoke.
“It’s been cool how he keeps popping into my life,” Watson said.
Stefen and Hilary’s primary residence is in State College, but Watson returns home often during the offseason. He lives at his parents’ house on Woodcreek when he’s in town. When he’s not running the hill, he can be seen at the high school where he works out with current Lions players. He can be seen catching off the JUGS machine or running routes at the stadium where his football career began.
Rossi also has him speak to the team at least once a year about his experiences.
“That’s my favorite part about being in the NFL,” Watson said. “Being a source of hope for the people back home.”
After Super Bowl Sunday, one of them will be returning home with a ring to show off on Woodcreek.