Watts’ big season capped with sixth-round selection by Vikings

FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas defensive lineman Armon Watts became the third Razorback selected in the 2019 NFL Draft after being taken by Minnesota in the sixth round with the 190th overall pick on Saturday.

Watts joins Hjalte Froholdt (New England, 4th round) and Dre Greenlaw (San Francisco, 5th round) as Razorbacks picked in this year’s NFL Draft, making it the eighth time in nine years Arkansas has had three or more players drafted.

The trio continues Arkansas’ streak of 24 years with at least one Razorback picked in the NFL Draft, which ranks fourth in the SEC.

From St. Louis, Missouri, Watts put together a strong senior campaign after recording just seven tackles over his previous three years wearing an Arkansas uniform.

In his final year, Watts played in all 12 games, starting each of the last 11 to total 621 snaps played, according to Pro Football Focus (PFF), entering the season with just 114 snaps combined from 2015-17.

He was recognized three times by PFF, making the National Team of the Week after the second game of the year, while also bringing home Midseason All-SEC Team honors and SEC Team of the Week accolades for his play in week nine.

He ranked fifth on the team in total tackles, first among defensive lineman, with 49, which included 25 solo stops, 8.5 tackles for loss and a team-high 7.0 sacks.

Watts forced a team-best three fumbles, doing so in each of the first two games of the year against Eastern Illinois and Colorado State, both resulting in turnovers.

He put together two separate streaks of three-straight games with at least one sack and wrapped the year with a season-high seven tackles, six solo, on the road at Missouri.

Watts finished the year with the team’s highest overall defensive grade from PFF at 85.6, posting eight games with marks over 70.0.

He racked up a season-best 92.3 at Colorado State, with a 90.4 pressure grade and an 84.0 mark in run defense to land on the National Team of the Week.

Watts earned the Crip Hall Homecoming Performance by a Senior Award from the media after Arkansas’ win over Tulsa on Oct. 20.

After the season, he was honored with the Dan Hampton Award (defensive lineman of the year) and the Paul Eells Award (perseverance through adversity) by the Little Rock Touchdown Club at the group’s end of year awards banquet.