Kenneth Dwight Watson (born March 13, 1978) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL). He was signed by the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent in 2001. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

Penn State #Redirect Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campu ...

. Watson also played for the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The c ...

Early years

Watson attended Harrisburg High School in

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania Harrisburg is the capital city of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Dauphin County. With a population of 50,135 as of the 2021 census, Harrisburg is the 9th largest city and 15th largest municipality in Pe ...

and was a

letterman Letterman may refer to: * Letterman (sports), a classification of high school or college athlete in the United States People * David Letterman (born 1947), American television talk show host ** ''Late Night with David Letterman'', talk show that ...

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

, basketball, and

track Track or Tracks may refer to: Routes or imprints * Ancient trackway, any track or trail whose origin is lost in antiquity * Animal track, imprints left on surfaces that an animal walks across * Desire path, a line worn by people taking the shorte ...

. In football, he was a prep All-American and an Associated Press all-state pick in 1995. In his senior season, he ran for 1,495 yards and 23 touchdowns. After his senior football season, he participated in the 1996 Big 33 game.

College career

Watson was a multi-purpose player at

, playing tailback, wide receiver and kick returner. He was part of the Penn State's infamous "running back by committee" during his senior season, sharing carries with future NFLers Larry Johnson, Omar Easy, and

Eric McCoo Eric Franklin McCoo, Jr. (born September 6, 1980) is a former American football running back in the National Football League (NFL) who played for one season for the Philadelphia Eagles. He played college football for Penn State. Early life A nat ...

. He holds two Penn State records: career kickoff returns (67) and career kickoff yardage (1,506 yards). His record for single-season kickoff yardage (522 yards) was broken in

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

by A. J. Wallace with 581 yards.

Professional career

Washington Redskins

Watson signed with the Washington Redskins in 2001 as rookie free agent, making the active roster, but not playing in a regular season game, and ended the season on the practice squad. In 2002, he played in all 16 games for the Redskins, mostly in relief of injured Stephen Davis, finishing second on the team in rushing with 116 carries for 534 yards and a pair of touchdowns. He spent the 2003 preseason with Washington, but was released in final roster cuts on August 31.

Cincinnati Bengals

Opening coin toss at the Washington Redskins vs

Watson then signed with the

as a free agent on September 30, 2004 and played in eight games, mostly on special teams that season. By the 2004 season, Watson had found his niche as an effective 3rd-down threat. He led Bengals running backs in receiving with 24 catches for 162 yards. His lone touchdown that season was quarterback Carson Palmer's first career touchdown pass on September 12 versus the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The J ...

. Watson suffered a season-ending

biceps The biceps or biceps brachii ( la, musculus biceps brachii, "two-headed muscle of the arm") is a large muscle that lies on the front of the upper arm between the shoulder and the elbow. Both heads of the muscle arise on the scapula and join ...

injury in the 2005 season opener and was placed on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

for the remainder of the season. He signed a one-year contract with the Bengals during the 2006 offseason and extended his contract three more years in March 2007. Watson saw significant playing time in 2007 due to injuries to starters Rudi Johnson and

Kenny Irons Kenny Irons (born September 15, 1983) is a former American football running back. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the second round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He played college football at Auburn. He is the brother of former Atlanta Falc ...

. Watson led the NFL in rushing, week 7 versus the

, with three touchdowns and 130 yards on 31 carries. In 2008, Watson saw action in the Bengals' first three regular season games, rushing seven times for 32 yards and catching two passes for three yards. He was inactive during Week 4 against the Cleveland Browns. The following week, the Bengals released Watson on October 4 to make room for wide receiver Chris Henry, who was coming off suspension. He was re-signed on October 7. Watson was released by the Bengals on August 10, 2009.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Kenny 1978 births Living people Players of American football from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania African-American players of American football American football running backs American football return specialists Penn State Nittany Lions football players Washington Redskins players Cincinnati Bengals players 21st-century African-American sportspeople 20th-century African-American sportspeople