With veteran Benjamin Watson serving a four-game NFL suspension for violating the league’s policy on performance enhancing drugs, the Patriots have gotten exactly four catches out of the tight end position through the first month of the season.
Now that Watson is back with the team – though technically not on the 53-man roster given his roster exemption at this point – what can the soon-to-be-39-year-old tight end bring to the Patriots offense that’s very much a work in progress?
“Ben’s a versatile guy,” New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels said in his Tuesday morning conference call with the local media. “He’s a smart guy. Certainly made a lot of plays in his career. Just gives us an element of speed and experience at the tight end position. He’s a productive guy who’s made plays under pressure. So Ben’s coming back here, it’s great to have him back this offseason and training camp. Hopefully we’ll be able to move forward with him in a role that suits his skill set and our team.”
Watson will have to catch up with his teammates, including fellow tight ends Matt LaCosse and Ryan Izzo, though his work over the offseason and in his previous tenure in New England as a first-round pick with the team from 2004-09 should aid that process.
“We couldn’t have any contact with Ben since that Sunday before the Pittsburgh game. It is what it is. Fortunately Ben has a lot of experience in our system and has been with us all through the spring and training camp,” Bill Belichick explained. “So hopefully he’ll be able to recall most all of what he did and the things that are new, Coach [Nick] Caley and Coach McDaniels will spend extra time with him to go over those with him to get him up to speed on those.”
Before a short retirement this offseason, Watson caught 35 passes for 400 yards and two touchdowns in 16 games played with the Saints last fall. Prior to that, he caught 61 passes in 2017 for the Ravens and a career-high 74 passes in 2015 in New Orleans, missing the 2016 season in Baltimore with a torn Achilles.
Related
