Nick Sirianni explains why he keeps sticking with Quez Watkins

When was the last time the ball went Quez Watkins’ way and something good happened?

Here’s a hint: It was more than a year ago.

But the Eagles keep trying. And trying and trying and trying.

And despite all the drops, fumbles and weak attempts that have turned into interceptions, Nick Sirianni says he’s still confident in the speedy Watkins.

“I'm confident still in Quez,” Sirianni said Wednesday. “I still have confidence in him, but that's the way the game goes sometimes with where the ball is going because he has to be accounted for on each play because of his speed, and it opens guys up underneath because of his speed.”

Opening up the guys underneath is fine. The problem is when the ball actually goes Watkins’ way.

On Monday night, after Watkins made no effort to prevent Julian Love from intercepting a deep ball in the end zone, Nick Sirianni didn’t seem too happy with Watkins.

“We can't allow an interception like that,” he said. “Quez (has) got to do everything he can to break that thing up.”

True, but why was Sirianni surprised?

Watkins has never been one to fight for the football. 

We all remember Dallas last year, when he let Jayron Kearse out-muscle him for an interception that set up a 2nd-quarter Cowboys touchdown and then let DaRon Bland outmuscle him for an interception that set up a 4th-quarter field goal. The INTs went on Gardner Minshew’s record, but Watkins was responsible for both. Those INTs set up 10 points and the Eagles lost by six.

Watkins, who’s supposed to be the Eagles’ deep threat, has one catch longer than 30 yards in his last 22 games and that was a 50-yarder against Washington at the Linc in November of last year. Watkins fumbled and instead of the Eagles perhaps taking the Eagles, Washington recovered and wound up winning.

Hate to bring up the Super Bowl, but Watkins’ drop inside the 10 in Glendale may have cost the Eagles a championship.

And then Monday night in Seattle, it was a repeat of Dallas. Love was holding Watkins’ jersey, but Watkins still didn’t do anything to break up the play. And again the Eagles lost.

Watkins had a nice 2021 season, with 43 catches for 647 yards, including receptions of 36, 39, 41, 53 and 91 yards.

But that was two years ago. Since then, he’s made three big plays – a 53-yard TD early last year against the Vikings, the 50-yarder and fumble vs. Washington and a 30-yard TD last year vs. the Packers.

The Eagles have eight losses since opening day 2022, and Watkins has played a major role in four of them – Washington and Dallas last year in the regular season, the Super Bowl and Monday night in Seattle.

So why does Sirianni stick with him?

“Well, understand this with Quez,” Sirianni said: “His speed changes the game, and not just because it's going to him. It's going to open up the rest of the field, and you can't always predict where the ball is going to go. … Things that happen where the defense dictates where the ball is going to go. 

“So in that particular case, that was one of them. Quez was on a clear-out route. The defense did something a little different than what we anticipated, and the ball went to him. 

“I still have confidence in Quez, but sometimes he's in there also to clear the field and to show his speed because his speed is legit. Legit.”

But if Watkins keeps making plays that hurt the Eagles’ chances to win, how is that helping the offense?

Not counting the meaningless season finale against Dallas last year, Watkins has played 843 snaps in 18 games since last year’s Washington loss, and he has 26 catches for 210 yards.

He’s played 239 snaps this year – he’s missed seven games with injuries – and has seven catches for 49 yards. 

Of 68 receivers who’ve played at least 1,000 snaps over the last two years, Watkins’ 411 receiving yards are the fewest – more than 100 fewer than anybody else.  

The Eagles have options. Olamide Zaccheaus and Julio Jones haven’t been super productive, but they haven’t committed the titanic mess-ups that Watkins has. Heck, even practice squad guys like Greg Ward, Devon Allen and Joseph Ngata seem like better options. Ward catches everything, Allen has world-class speed and Ngata has terrific size.

Sirianni wouldn’t commit to Watkins remaining the No. 3 receiver, but during the three-game losing streak, Watkins has played more snaps (108) than Jones and Zaccheaus combined (89).

“We'll see,” Sirianni said. We're confident in him as a player, as a teammate. Julio has done a good job. O.Z. has done a good job. We have three guys that rotate in between being the No. 3 receiver.

“We'll see where the reps continue to go. Each game plan is a little bit different from what you're asking the players to do and the roles. So we'll see.”