FOXBOROUGH, Mass. –The New England Patriots announced today that they have signed free agent linebacker Dekoda Watson. Terms of the contract were not announced.
Watson, 27, has played in 70 NFL games, with seven starts, and has registered 120 tackles, three sacks, one interception, four passes defensed, two forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries during his five-year NFL career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2010-13), Jacksonville Jaguars (2014) and Dallas Cowboys (2014). Last season, he began the season with Jacksonville and appeared in nine games with one start. He posted nine tackles before being released on Nov. 11, 2014, and signing with Dallas on Nov. 14, 2014. He played in one game for the Cowboys, but did not accrue any statistics.
The 6-foot-2, 240-pounder originally entered the NFL as a seventh-round draft pick (217th overall) by Tampa Bay in 2010 out of Florida State. Watson's most productive NFL season came with the Buccaneers in 2013 when he registered 42 tackles, two sacks, one interception and one forced fumble. Â Â Â Â
