New England Patriots Following his college career, Watkins signed with the
New England Patriots of the
National Football League in May 2003. He was later released during the following August after spending training camp with the team.
Montreal Alouettes Watkins signed with the
Montreal Alouettes of the
Canadian Football League in June 2004. He played in four of the first five games but missed the rest of the season due to a shoulder injury. In
2005, he recorded his first touchdown, his first 1,000-yard receiving season and his first CFL All-star selection. He was part of the 2005 Alouettes' foursome of 1,000-yard receivers, tying the record (set by the 2004 Alouettes receivers of Ben Cahoon with 1183 yards, Jeremaine Copeland with 1154 yards, Thyron Anderson with 1147 yards, and Kwame Cavil with 1090 yards) for most 1,000-yard receivers on one team in a season. ==Statistics==