No Sweat for Quez Watkins After Offseason with Calvin Ridley
The only way Quez Watkins sweats in the hours leading up to the Eagles’ final cuts will be during Monday’s practice or if he steps outside into Sunday’s heat and humidity.
That wasn’t something that was so certain when an offseason of major upheaval arrived, but the second-year wide receiver has put himself in a position to be a major contributor after an offseason of training that translated into a strong summer camp.
Watkins spent the offseason working out with Calvin Ridley, the former first-round draft pick of the Atlanta Falcons in 2018, who has 217 catches for more than 3,000 yards and 26 TDs in just his three years in the league.
That’s a good teacher, and Watkins was a good student.
“We work out with the same trainers,” said Watkins. “He’d been with them for like two years before I got with them. He just came in when I was in, and we started working with him.
“Really learned how to get in and out of my breaks, stay low, consistently staying low in and out of my routes, no matter what route it is. And get in and out as fast as possible. He’s one of the best route-runners in the game.”
MORE: UPDATE: Ed Kracz's First 53-Man Roster
Watkins is soft-spoken, like many in the Eagles’ rebuilt WR room.
He comes from Athens, Ala., a town of about 21,000 located in the north-central part of Alabama and about a four-and-a-half-hour ride to where he went to college at Southern Mississippi.
Growing up in a relatively small town, one that produced now-retired quarterback Philip Rivers has motivated Watkins to make a name for himself in the NFL.
“I put a whole lot of pressure on myself,” he said. “Coming from where I’m coming from, a small city, not a lot of opportunities. So, for me to have this opportunity, it’s great. I know all my people back home are counting on me, supporting me.”
Watkins made a lot of noise in the preseason opener, turning a bubble screen into a 79-yard touchdown, and said his phone blew up with texts and DMs from many in his hometown.
That was basically the extent of it for him in the games that didn’t count, targeted just three times in three exhibition games.
He played against the New York Jets on Friday, as did Jalen Reagor, but neither was in the game very long.
“I felt like they needed a little bit more work to get out there, catch a couple balls and go,” said coach Nick Sirianni about Watkins and Reagor. “We tried to run a big deep ball to Quez. It’s just Joe (Flacco) got hit on the play. We just wanted to get him a touch and a catch and get him out (and same with Reagor).”
Nobody really did much of anything in an 0-2-1 preseason for the Eagles, under the directive of Sirianni and probably GM Howie Roseman not to play anybody for fear of injury.
Watkins did plenty, though, during joint practices against the Patriots and Jets and has separated himself from another late-round draft pick in his 2020 class, John Hightower.
Hightower, who was taken in the fifth round, will sweat the cuts.
Watkins, a sixth-round pick, won’t.
MORE: John McMullen Takes His Crack at the Eagles' First 53
He could be the starting slot receiver ahead of Greg Ward when the Eagles line up in Atlanta on Sept. 12.
It’s his 4.35 speed that has allowed him to separate from the pack.
He’s also 6-feet, 193 pounds, which is big for a slot player.
“Usually in the slot, they aren’t really that type,” said Eagles slot CB Avonte Maddox. “Like he has size, too. He’s no small guy … so you really don’t see that much in the slot. I don’t really know who I can compare him to. Just compare him to Quez.”
Maddox has had a close-up view of Watkins’ speed since he’s had to defend against it more often than not in practices.
“Last year he was pretty good, too,” said Maddox, who called Watkins a long strider. “He was always fast. He’s super-fast. I tell him all the time. In the offseason, he’s working out at his place. I watched one clip on IG (Instagram) and I said what the (bleep)?
“He’s been working really hard in the offseason and it’s showing on the field. He’s blazing, making big catches and grabs. I’m excited to see what he does this year. It’s going to be fun.”
Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Eagle Maven and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglemaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.
