Texas Longhorns Add Key Steelers Veteran to Staff

The Texas Longhorns are making an interesting addition to the football program's player personnel staff this offseason.

Per reports from Matt Zenitz of 247Sports, the Longhorns are hiring former Pittsburgh Steelers veteran scout Chris Watts to the staff in a player personnel capacity. It's unclear what exactly his role will entail on the Forty Acres.

Watts worked as a Steelers college area scout for four years. Prior to that, he worked for 15 years with the New York Giants and was on staff during the team's two Super Bowl wins in 2011 and 2007.

What Chris Watts Could Bring to Texas

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian looks on prior to a game against the Georgia Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

With the addition of Watts, the Longhorns are getting an experienced football mind who has nearly two decades of experience at the NFL level. Adding that kind of resume to the staff can't be overlooked.

Texas has been no stranger to sending some elite players to the pros, and the hiring of Watts helps ensure that the Longhorns continue to do just that in the immediate future. Ideally, he will be able to help Steve Sarkisian and the coaching staff identify which areas a player needs to improve in and how that improvement can potentially transition to NFL-level production.

Despite only having six players get selected in this year's draft and failing to produce a first-round pick, Texas is expected make some major headlines at the top of the 2027 NFL Draft.

With offensive stars like quarterback Arch Manning, wide receiver Cam Coleman and offensive tackle Trevor Goosby along with defensive players like edge rusher Colin Simmons, linebacker Rasheem Biles and safety Jelani McDonald, the Longhorns could be looking at as few as four players getting selected in the first round of next year's draft.

That's not to mention the multiple other players that will be getting selected in the later rounds like cornerback Bo Mascoe, running back Raleek Brown, defensive lineman Ian Geffrard and offensive tackle Melvin Siani among others.

Adding someone like Watts to the fold helps assure that these players and more get the extra NFL-type feedback that they will need in order to give themselves the best chance of success at the professional level.

Though Watts' impact will be most strongly felt behind closed doors, it will be interesting to see how it helps Texas moving forward.

Sign up to our free newsletter and follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram for the latest news.

Add us as a preferred source on Google