Steelers Now
A former wide receiver of the Pittsburgh Steelers is heading back to the NFC.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Quez Watkins is signing to the Philadelphia Eagles practice squad, the team announced.
Watkins, 27, spent the entire 2024 season on the Steelers practice squad. However, when his contract expired at the end of the season, Pittsburgh decided to sign 17 players to future contracts for the 2025 season, including eight that finished the season on the practice squad, but not Watkins.
Watkins struggled to establish a role for himself with the Steelers. He was tried on special teams, but his one stint as a punt returner did not go well, with two mis-judged fair catches and a muff in the preseason. He also showed inconsistent hands during training camp. In three preseason games, he finished with one catch for 10 yards.
He was released at the end of training camp and re-signed to the practice squad, where he remained throughout the 2024 season.
It did not take long for the speedster, who ran a 4.35-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, to catch on with another team, though.
In January, Watkins joined the Arizona Cardinals on a reserve/future contract. Unfortunately, he suffered an injury that landed him on injured reserve, and he was released just eight days later.
Watkins began his NFL career as a sixth-round pick out of the 2020 NFL Draft by the Eagles. Through his first four seasons in the league, he racked up 98 catches for 1,249 yards and six touchdowns.
He played his college ball at Southern Miss. There he had 159 catches for 2,404 yards and 17 touchdowns from 2017-19 and was named first-team All-Conference USA twice.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Speedy Ex-Steelers Wide Receiver Joins NFC Contender
