Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson has come to life alongside quarterback Jordan Love over the past several weeks. Watson’s displayed a knack for the big play during his Packers tenure. He averages 15 yards per catch, and five of his 69 career receptions have gone for 40+ yards. Watson’s also found the end zone 14 times in about a season and a half worth of play.
The explosiveness was a continuing trait, one Watson repeatedly put on display during a collegiate career with the North Dakota State Bison in which he averaged 20 yards per reception. Combine his production with prototype measurables (6’4″, 208 pounds, 4.36 40-yard dash time) and it’s easy to see why Green Bay made Watson a high second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.
Watson’s got some impressive traits, which isn’t overly surprising when considering the athleticism in his genes. Watson isn’t just a second-generation NFL player, but also a second-generation Packer. You see, some two decades before selecting Christian Watson the Packers spent a sixth-round pick on his father, Tim Watson, in the 1993 NFL Draft.
Who Are Tim and Christa Watson?
As mentioned, Tim Watson was drafted to play safety for the Packers coming out of Howard College in ’93. He didn’t last long in Green Bay, however, as an unfortunately timed ankle injury saw him hit the chopping block near the end of training camp. Notable former teammate and fellow defensive back LeRoy Butler spoke to ESPN about the kind of talent the elder Watson was.
“He was big and exceptionally smart,” Butler recalled. “So I’m not surprised his kid’s really smart. I was a little perplexed why they cut him. He was one of the few guys that knew the defense as a young guy.”
This photo was taken when Christian Watson was a sophomore at North Dakota State. From right, it’s Watson, his dad, older brother Tre, and older sister Alexus. (Photo courtesy Tazim Wajed)
Watson became a career journeyman after that. He briefly returned for a cup of coffee in Green Bay before doing stints with the Kansas City Chiefs, New York Giants, and Philadelphia Eagles. He played in 13 career games between 1993-97, registering no statistics, according to Pro Football Reference.
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Tim, who changed his name to Tazim Wajid Wajed in 2019, moved onto a career in financial services after his playing days wrapped up, but he stayed close to the game nonetheless. He spent a few years as a defensive backs coach for the Scottish Claymores in NFL Europe. And he put a lot of effort into coaching up Christian as well.
Dad spoke to Sports Illustrated about his experiences coaching up, and even competing with, his son shortly after he got drafted by the Packers. Recounting his experiences raising a young Christian soon after his own playing career concluded.
“I was really high-level working out and was still very physical myself,” Wajed said. “Christian wanted to race me all the time, he wanted to work out with me. The boys would go out and train with me. He developed a work ethic.”
“He literally would run next to me when running repeat quarter-(miles). I’m running quarters, and this little itty-bitty kid is running right there behind me. So, he developed a work ethic and a tolerance to things that made people quit. His friends thought they wanted to until they trained with us for 10 minutes.”
Christian’s mom is Christa Watson. She’s a mother to three as well as an executive in the event and hospitality industry in Tampa, Florida. She’s something of the unsung hero in this tale. First, being counted on to prop up her children’s health and wellness while her husband chased pro football dreams both here and abroad.
“We had to work for everything we had,” she wrote for The Leap. “When he left the Chiefs for the Giants, we rented month-to-month and didn’t know where we’d be from year-to-year. We had no house, no support structure.”
Between Tim’s pro career and the entirety of Christian’s football-playing career, Christa’s ridden the football carousel more than most. She knows the ups and downs that accompany the sport. And now that her son’s found substantial success at the game’s highest level, she has a pretty apt description for what it’s been like to see him thrive.
“It can be an out of body experience to some degree,” Christa said to Milwaukee radio station 97.3 when discussing watching her son play for the Packers.