Philadelphia Eagles Sending Clear Message To Quez Watkins With Latest Signing

The Philadelphia Eagles are clearly sending a message to their No. 3 wide receiver Quez Watkins.

Just days before the 2023 NFL Draft, the Eagles made a notable surprise signing by adding former Atlanta Falcons starting receiver Olamide Zaccheaus. Not only is it clear that the Zaccheaus signing was made to improve the receiving corps, the move was made as a direct message to Watkins.

The 24-year-old Watkins broke through during his sophomore campaign in 2021, catching 43 passes for 647 yards (15.0 yards per reception) as the team’s No. 2 receiver. His season was a quality one, as he also caught 69.4% of passes thrown his way, the highest mark of any receiver on the team.

However, the acquisition of Pro Bowl receiver A.J. Brown during last year’s draft seemed to put a dent on not only Watkins’ stat line, but his number of targets.

Watkins’ numbers declined across the board during the 2022 season while serving as the team’s No. 3 receiver behind Brown and DeVonta Smith. The third-year receiver caught just 33 passes for 354 yards and saw his yards per reception decline to just 10.7 yards per catch.

His disappointing season was capped off by a massive drop during the Eagles’ Super Bowl LVII loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. On a second-and-nine from the Chiefs’ 42-yard-line late in the third quarter, Watkins dropped an easy pass that could have given the Eagles a 10-point lead. Philadelphia ended up losing the game, 38-35.

On the other hand, Zaccheaus is coming off of a career season, posting 40 receptions for 533 receiving yards and three touchdowns as the Falcons’ No. 2 receiver.

Despite the notable signing, head coach Nick Sirianni continued to defend Watkins and expressed confidence in his young receiver shortly after Zaccheaus’ signing.

Via Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia:

“We have a lot of confidence in Quez, and I know he’s going to come back,” says Sirianni. “I know he’s hungry. He’s determined. He feels like he didn’t have his best season. Now, he didn’t get the opportunities — we’ve talked about this. He didn’t get the opportunities that he had in the past, and so it’s just taking advantage of the opportunities that he has.”

Sirianni also stresses that Watkins is still the Eagles’ No. 3 receiver.

“But Quez is our No. 3 receiver,” says Sirianni. “There will be competition for it just like there was when Zach [Pascal] was here for different roles within that. But we’re excited about Quez. I’m really excited with our new addition.”

While it’s plausible that the Eagles keep around both receivers, it’s more likely that they keep one and drop the other. Watkins is entering the final year of his rookie contract and Philadelphia can trade the young receiver while saving $2.7 million in the process.

With the draft coming up within the next week, the Eagles could very well trade Watkins if they find a potential suitor. It may also be a big reason why general manager Howie Roseman continues to talk up Watkins shortly after signing Zaccheaus.

“We’re excited about him and the skill set that he has,” Roseman said about Watkins. “I’m not saying this to be combative in any way, but at the end of the day he’s also played outside. A lot of the guys that we have, and you’ve talked about this with our staff when we’re talking about it, guys can multi-align. Guys can play inside and out. I think that’s one of the benefits of the group that we have.”

Prior to the Eagles signing Zaccheaus, The Athletic’s Bo Wulf mentioned how Philadelphia could look to upgrade from Watkins through the draft and how they could trade him.

“Watkins had an underwhelming third season in Philadelphia as the No. 3 wide receiver following A.J. Brown’s addition to the offense,” said Wulf back in February. “Upgrading from Watkins won’t be the Eagles’ top offseason priority, but it’s something they’d like to do, perhaps in the middle rounds of the draft. Watkins still offers top-end speed, so if there’s a team desperate for some, Howie Roseman would certainly be open to a deal.”

At the current moment, Philadelphia has eight wide receivers on their roster.

If the Eagles end up selecting a receiver during the 2023 NFL Draft — especially during the middle rounds — it’s clear that Watkins will be on the hot seat entering training camp.