Chiefs' Justin Watson: Sees decline in playing time
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Watson reeled in both of his targets for 26 yards during Sunday's 30-21 loss against the Bills.
Despite matching his two-catch and two-target total from a week ago, Watson notably played a significantly lower snap percentage (56 percent) compared to what he drew (75 percent) last week and in preceding games. That likely correlates with the return of JuJu Smith-Schuster (hamstring) from a multiweek absence, leaving Watson slightly lower on the pecking order for reps. He finished with the second-most offensive snaps (31) behind Xavier Worthy (32), but Watson doesn't produce enough to warrant fantasy consideration in most leagues.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Small impact versus Broncos
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Watson hauled in both of his targets for six yards during Sunday's 16-14 victory versus the Broncos.
Watson remains a regular in the offensive game plan, logging a team-high 52 snaps at wide receiver. That said, he's not a significant target as a receiver, finishing with no more than three catches in a game this season. The veteran wideout should continue to see regular offensive snaps but doesn't serve much purpose from a fantasy perspective.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Reels in three passes
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Watson caught three of four targets in Monday's 30-24 overtime win versus the Buccaneers.
JuJu Smith-Schuster (hamstring) was inactive, meaning Watson served as the No. 3 wide receiver and recorded a 69 percent snap share. Watson has handled a consistent role in this offense, but he has yet to post more than three receptions or 45 receiving yards in a game this season.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Collects trio of passes in Week 8
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Watson reeled in all three of his targets for 33 yards during Sunday's 27-20 victory versus the Raiders.
Watson matched a season-high total with just three targets, racking up a season-best yardage output on the way to a season-best 76 percent snap share. While the workload remains high, Watson's total from Sunday being a season-best paints a clearer picture of his fantasy value every week. To put it plainly, he can be left on waiver wires in the vast majority of league formats.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Another quiet effort in Week 7
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Watson reeled in his only target for eight yards during Sunday's 28-18 win over the 49ers.
Watson continues to log regular reps for the Chiefs, claiming the largest snap share (73 percent) among wideouts Sunday. Despite that, he's rarely utilized as a pass-catcher, sporting just seven grabs through the first six games. The Chiefs are also, unsurprisingly, rumored to be shopping around for another wide receiver before the trade deadline, a move that would position Watson further down the pecking order. Watson should continue to see ample playing time for now, especially after JuJu Smith-Schuster departed Sunday's contest due to a hamstring aggravation.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Blanked in Week 5
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Watson wasn't targeted during Monday's 26-13 win against the Saints.
Watson still logged the most snaps (59) among Chiefs wideouts Monday, but he's clearly not a go-to option as a receiver. JuJu Smith-Schuster, Mecole Hardman and Xavier Worthy all saw more targets despite playing fewer snaps. Watson hasn't reeled in more than two passes in a game today, so even if his playing time increases moving forward with Rashee Rice (knee) and Hollywood Brown (shoulder) both done for the regular season, the veteran wideout is unlikely to enter the fantasy realm in a meaningful way.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Minimal impact versus Chargers
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Watson hauled in two of three targets for 27 yards during Sunday's 17-10 win versus the Chargers.
The Chiefs' carnage of injuries continued to pile up Saturday, when Rashee Rice (knee) was added to the list. Thus, Watson could be in line for additional snaps moving forward; he logged the second-most snaps during Sunday's game behind Xavier Worthy. Per Adam Teicher of ESPN, head coach Andy Reid plans to spread the ball around more in the absence of Rice, meaning Watson could see a few more looks. Even if that's the case, Watson has been in similar positions in years past, so it remains to be seen if the veteran wideout can provide any significant fantasy value.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Week 5 Waiver Priority List
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The Chiefs have to replace Rashee Rice (knee), and we'll see if they bring someone in via trade or off the street. Xavier Worthy should have a prominent role at receiver, and clearly, Travis Kelce remains the top target in the passing game. But we'll see if guys like Watson and JuJu-Smith Schuster (3 percent rostered) can help Patrick Mahomes moving forward, and both are worth adding in deeper leagues. Watson played a season-high 69 percent of the snaps in Week 4 against the Chargers, but he has scored 4.7 PPR points or less in every game this year. And Smith-Schuster scored a touchdown in Week 3 at Atlanta, but he only has two catches on the season on four targets. Watson and Smith-Schuster are worth adding for 1 percent of your remaining FAB in deeper leagues.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Tallies pair of grabs in Week 2
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Watson hauled in both of his targets for 22 yards during Sunday's 26-25 win over the Bengals.
Watson made the most of his limited opportunities and has reeled in each of the three passes thrown his way through two games. That said, he played less than half the offensive snaps (45 percent) in Sunday's contest and has just three targets through two games. As has been the case for Watson in recent seasons, the wideout seems slated to play a regular role that doesn't figure to amount to fantasy relevance in most league formats.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Hauls in lone target Week 1
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Watson secured his only target for 25 yards during Thursday's 27-20 win over the Ravens.
Watson played 52 percent of offensive snaps versus Baltimore in Week 1, working as the Chiefs' clear No. 3 receiver behind Rashee Rice (78 percent) and Xavier Worthy (63 percent). That involvement will dip once starter Marquise Brown (shoulder) returns from injury, but if he remains sidelined Week 2 versus Cincinnati, Watson will have another opportunity to capitalize on an increased snap share.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Could help fill in for Brown
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Watson could see more opportunities early on during the season while fellow wideout Marquise Brown tends to a shoulder injury, Adam Teicher of ESPN.com reports.
With Brown unable to practice and his availability for Week 1 unclear, Watson has been taking many of the snaps in training camp that would have otherwise gone to Brown. Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy would likely rank as greater priorities for targets if Brown's absence bleeds into the regular season, but Watson could be the top choice to join the two in three-receiver sets sans Brown. During the 2023 season, Watson suited up in 16 contests on his way to finishing with a 27-460-3 receiving line on 53 targets over 513 offensive snaps.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Foot injury downplayed
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Watson is expected to miss just a few days of training camp due to a minor foot issue, Matt Derrick of ChiefsDigest.com reports.
Per Derrick, at first glace the left foot injury that Watson sustained Wednesday appeared concerning, but tests have reportedly revealed that the wideout avoided a long-term issue. Once Watson is able to return to practice, he'll look to cement his standing in a Kansas City WR corps that also includes Rashee Rice, Hollywood Brown, Xavier Worthy, Kadarius Toney, Mecole Hardman and Skyy Moore. In 16 regular-season outings in 2023, Watson compiled a 27-460-3 receiving line.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Injured at practice
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Watson departed Wednesday's practice early due to an apparent foot injury, Matt Derrick of ChiefsDigest.com reports.
Watson was injured while catching a pass, then was carted to the locker room after meeting with trainers, per Adam Teicher of ESPN.com. The severity of his injury remains unknown, but any missed time on Watson's part will open up reps for receivers lower on Kansas City's depth chart, especially with Xavier Worthy (illness) still missing practice time. Kadarius Toney, Mecole Hardman, Skyy Moore, Justyn Ross and Nikko Remigio could all benefit from more snaps.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Makes two catches
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Watson recorded two receptions on two targets for 20 yards in Saturday's 26-7 win over the Dolphins.
Watson has emerged as Kansas City's third pass catcher at points this season, though he was one of four players with either two or three targets in Saturday's win. Instead, targets were heavily concentrated between Rashee Rice and Travis Kelce. With the performance, Watson failed to top 30 yards for the first time out of the last four games in which he's received at least 40 percent of the offensive snaps.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Logs just 18 snaps in Week 18
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Watson didn't catch a pass (on one target) during Sunday's 13-12 win over the Chargers.
Watson was among those active for Sunday's regular-season finale, but he didn't play too much, which instead allowed Mecole Hardman (58 snaps), Richie James (48 snaps) and Justyn Ross (38 snaps) to claim the vast majority of action at wide receiver. Watson had played 45 percent or more of the offensive snaps in each of the previous seven games, and he will presumably claim that type of role in the postseason. Watson closes out the regular season with 27 catches for 460 yards and three touchdowns on 53 targets, finishing second among Chiefs wideouts in all of the categories to rookie Rashee Rice.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Week 18 Waiver Priority List
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The Chiefs might only rest Rashee Rice of their main receivers to make sure everyone else knows how to catch, but we could see Watson, Mecole Hardman and Richie James in prominent roles in Week 18 at the Chargers. Patrick Mahomes isn't expected to play much, if at all, so they could be catching passes from Blaine Gabbert. But it's a favorable matchup since the Chargers are No. 3 in most Fantasy points allowed to opposing receivers this year, and I like Watson the best of the aforementioned trio. In deeper leagues, Watson could be a No. 3 Fantasy receiver in Week 18.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Faces Bengals on Sunday
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With Kadarius Toney (hip) ruled out, Watson figures to maintain a key role in the Chiefs offense Sunday against the Bengals.
With Toney sidelined in Week 16, Watson -- who has recorded a 26-419-3 receiving line in 14 games -- started against the Raiders, logging 49 of a possible 76 snaps on offense en route to catching four of his six targets for 38 yards and a touchdown. This weekend, look for Watson to maintain his complementary role behind Kansas City's top targets (TE Travis Kelce and WR Rashee Rice), a context that limits the 27-year-old's fantasy utility to deeper formats.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Logs 49 snaps in Week 16
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Watson was on the field for 49 of a possible 76 snaps on offense in Monday's 20-14 loss to the Raiders.
In the process, Watson hauled in four of his six targets for 38 yards and a touchdown in the contest. Looking ahead to this weekend's game against the Bengals, Watson profiles as a fantasy option in deeper formats, having overall logged 26 catches on 49 targets for 419 yards and three TDs through 14 outings to date.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Gets into end zone in Week 16 loss
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Watson caught four of six targets for 38 yards and a touchdown in Monday's 20-14 loss to the Raiders.
His seven-yard TD grab late in the fourth quarter gave Kansas City a shot at stealing the win, but the defense couldn't get a stop on Las Vegas' ensuing possession. Watson has only three touchdowns on the season, but all three have come in the last six games, as he's established a little trust with Patrick Mahomes. The 27-year-old wideout has already put together a career-best campaign with 26 catches (on 49 targets) for 419 yards.
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Chiefs' Justin Watson: Single grab in Week 14
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Watson gathered in his only target for 18 yards during Sunday's 20-17 loss against the Bills.
Watson has collected a combined two passes over his last three games and has hauled in more than two passes in a game just twice all season, leaving the veteran wideout off the fantasy radar in most fantasy formats. He continues to play regular snaps out wide but isn't a major factor as a receiver.
