Watkins, a wide receiver, has altered NFL teams in Pennsylvania. The former star player from Athens High School has signed a free agent contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers following four seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles.
On Monday, the Steelers revealed that Watkins had signed a one-year contract.
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After finishing second in the wide receiver class at the 2020 NFL Scouting Combine, Watkins was selected in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft. In 49 regular-season games with Philadelphia, Watkins had 98 receptions for 1,249 yards and six touchdowns.
In 2021, Watkins’ best season, he caught 43 passes for 647 yards and one touchdown. After the Eagles acquired wide receiver A.J. Brown in 2022, his output dropped to 33 receptions for 354 yards and three touchdowns.
Watkins had a hamstring ailment in 2023 that kept him out of eight games, despite having 15 receptions for 142 yards and one score.
George Pickens, a former star player at Hoover High School, led the Steelers in receiving last season with 63 receptions for 1,140 yards and five touchdowns. However, Pittsburgh’s next two wide outs who were productive last season are no longer with the team.
Last month, the Steelers traded Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers, who had five touchdowns and 717 yards from 51 receptions in 2023. After registering 34 receptions for 280 yards in the previous season, Allen Robinson is a free agent.
Five of the other seven wide receivers on Pittsburgh’s roster as of right now did not record a reception in the 2023 NFL season. Calvin Austin III had 17 receptions for 180 yards and one score as a rookie for the Steelers, while Van Jefferson had 20 grabs for 209 yards while playing for the Los Angeles Rams and Atlanta Falcons.
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