Following his college career, Watkins signed with the New England Patriots of the National Football League in May 2003.
[1] Watkins signed with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League in June 2004.
He played in four of the first five games but missed the rest of the season due to a shoulder injury.
Watkins would go on to record five straight 1,000-yard seasons between 2005 and 2009 while falling just short in 2010 with 970 after he missed five games due to injury.
His 2011 season was curtailed due to injury where he only managed to catch 31 passes for 395 yards and three touchdowns.