What the Vikings can expect from their 2019 sixth-round picks
By Chris Schad
Armon Watts – DT (Arkansas)
Watts brings a good story from his days at Arkansas as he was a seldom-used backup until taking the bull by the horns in his senior season last year.
After appearing in just seven games for the Razorbacks in his first three seasons, Watts exploded for 7.5 sacks and 49 combined tackles last fall. Such a rise in production shows that Watts could have plenty of potential on the inside for the Vikings and he can thrive with proper coaching.
An example of that was Watts’ ability to use his hands and destroy single blocks. His 6-foot-4, 309-pound frame can also take on double teams, which should be a dream for Minnesota defensive line coach Andre Patterson.
While Watts has shown he can get the job done in his stat line, those results didn’t show up at this year’s NFL Scouting Combine. His 5.23 second 40-yard dash time was in the seventh percentile among defensive linemen according to PlayerProfiler and his 20 reps on the bench press show a lack of upper body strength that also ranked him in the seventh percentile.
Because of this, Watts doesn’t have the burst that most elite defensive prospects have. He relies more on his hand placement and timing to get the job done.
In his rookie season, Watts will likely be competing for a roster spot in what is shaping up to be a healthy competition at defensive tackle. With Linval Joseph and Shamar Stephen a lock, Watts will likely be battling Jaleel Johnson, Jalyn Holmes, and Ifeadi Odenigbo to make the Vikings’ final 2019 roster.