One is a second-round pick who has battled through three lower-body injuries and a concussion to start his NFL career. The other is a castoff who was cut by the Jacksonville Jaguars earlier this year and expected to be nothing more than a special teams weapon.
On Sunday at Lambeau Field, Christian Watson and Rudy Ford – a truly unlikely tandem – teamed up to save the 2022 season of the Green Bay Packers.
Watson caught three touchdown passes and Ford picked off two passes to help the Packers escape a sixth-straight loss and stun the Dallas Cowboys with a 31-28 win in overtime.
Ford was the early savior. After the Cowboys took a 7-0 lead and then strip-sacked Aaron Rodgers inside the 20-yard line, Ford took points off the board when he jumped a pass in the end zone and made his first of two interceptions of Dak Prescott.
What could have been 10-0 or 14-0 in favor of the Cowboys stayed at 7-0.
And the Packers made the missed opportunity hurt just a few plays later.
Watson, the 34th overall pick in the 2022 draft, got behind the coverage of Anthony Brown and made an impressive over-the-shoulder catch of Aaron Rodgers’ deep throw for a 58-yard touchdown.
Ford got Prescott again on the ensuing series. He returned the pick to the Cowboys 24-yard line, setting up a short touchdown drive that ended with Aaron Jones’ 12-yard run.
Those three plays turned the game in the Packers’ favor during the first 30 minutes.
Watson took over the fourth quarter.
The rookie erased a 28-14 deficit with a 39-yard touchdown catch on 4th-and-7 and a 7-yard touchdown with 2:29 left in the fourth quarter.
Four catches, 107 yards, three touchdowns. It was a Randy Moss-like stat line for Watson is a do-or-die game for the Packers.
Ford helped the Packers defense get off the field on four straight drives to end the game, including on fourth down in overtime. His interceptions led to 14 points.
Who could have seen this coming?
Watson missed almost all of training camp after needing knee surgery, suffered a pair of hamstring injuries during the first two months of the regular season and then was knocked out of a primetime game in Buffalo with a concussion.
Ford was released by the Jaguars in August. He came into Sunday’s game with almost twice as many special teams snaps as defensive snaps and just one career interception. He started at safety and doubled his interception total.
Unlikely heroes saved the Packers. Of course, Aaron Rodgers played one of his best games of the season and Aaron Jones produced over 150 total yards, so Watson and Ford didn’t do it alone. But the Packers don’t snap a five-game losing streak without the oft-injured rookie and special teams castoff.
