Jaylen Watson becomes hero for Chiefs in win vs. Chargers: Revisiting 7th round pick’s improbable journey from Wendy’s to the NFL

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In a game that was billed as Patrick Mahomes vs. Justin Herbert, it ended up being defense that made the difference.

In the Chiefs’ 27-24 win over the Chargers on “Thursday Night Football,” the Chargers drove down the field in a 17-17 game and were on the precipice of scoring. Instead, rookie cornerback undercut a throw intended for tight end Gerald Everett and ran it back 99 yards for a touchdown with 10:29 left in the game.

Per NFL Research, it’s the longest go-ahead fourth-quarter touchdown by a rookie in NFL history, which is admittedly a reach of a stat, but an interesting one all the same.

In order to get there, Watson had to make Herbert miss, and after that he put on the burners to score.

MORE: Chargers vs. Chiefs final score, highlights: Chiefs battle back to win

Watson entered this season a 23-year-old rookie picked 243rd overall in the seventh round of this year’s draft. His college career started at Ventura College in California, and in 2019 he committed to play for USC. However, Watson was forced to decommit because of academics. After that, he moved back to his home state of Georgia and worked at Wendy’s with his mom.

“It was really hard because I’d been playing football since I was five and just have a tremendous love for the game,” Watson told the Augusta Chronicle last April. “Football is a safe haven. I didn’t have the best in home life, so when I’m going through family issues or whatever I was going through, when I got on the field, it was my safe haven.”

While going through this time in his life, Watson became a straight-A student and was eventually able to enroll at Washington State, where he became an All-Pac-12 honorable mention before eventually getting drafted by the Chiefs.

According to local Kansas City NBC’s Hayley Lewis, who talked to Watson after the game, he wasn’t surprised he was able to force the turnover, though he may not have realized the gravity it would have.

MORE: Chiefs’ Travis Kelce body slammed by Chargers’ Derwin James

“I woke up knowing I was gonna get a pick…” Watson said, per Lewis. “….As a 7th rounder I knew I’d be tested to come up big.”

Watson spoke on the podium after the game as well.

It’s a moment I’ll never forget.

“I’m just a very resilient person,” he said in response to a question about his time before the NFL. “Always been working for what I had. I was never given anything, and I think that gave me an edge on the football field as well. So I just try to carry that edge, show some hunger, show some anger on the football field, and let it out on the opponents.”

The Chiefs’ corners are an unheralded group, particularly in comparison to a Chargers secondary that has garnered a lot of attention from a busy offseason. However, Watson, Rashad Fenton, and L’Jarius Sneed all did their part to limit the Chargers’ vaunted offense.

For Kansas City, that has translated to a 2-0 record. If nothing else, Watson has earned a bit of a double take from quarterbacks looking to test him on the goal line.

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