The Hamilton Tiger-Cats announced on Thursday that David Watford will be the team’s starting quarterback for their week 7 matchup against the Calgary Stampeders. He will be the third different quarterback to start a game for Hamilton this season, with the two others being Jeremiah Masoli and Dane Evans. Masoli was the team’s original QB1, but was benched in week 2 after his second straight game with multiple interceptions. Dane Evans took his spot, but was injured in last weeks’ loss to the Toronto Argonauts. Now, the Tiger-Cats hope Watford can lead the team to victories in the next few games.
Watford played collegiate football at the University of Virginia for three years before transferring to the smaller Hampton University, which was also in his hometown. After going undrafted in the 2016 NFL draft, he signed with the Philadelphia Eagles. Watford spent the entire 2016 season on the Eagles’ practice squad, and was released before the start of the 2017 season.
A few weeks after his release from the Eagles, he was signed to the Saskatchewan Roughriders’ practice roster as a quarterback. Watford didn’t see the field until the following season, when he was the backup to Zach Collaros. He completed 15 of 32 passes for 168 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions in 2018. After being cut by the Roughriders prior to the 2019 season, he signed with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
Watford had an interesting role with Hamilton in 2019, being used as a short-yardage runner. He had 6 rushing touchdowns in 12 games, and was still used as a traditional quarterback during garbage time.
On Friday, Watford will make his first CFL appearance in over two years. There’s not much to predict when it comes to Watford’s performance, since he’s barely had any playing time during his career. Hopefully, he will be a pleasant surprise and pick up where Evans left off, but if not, the Tiger-Cats could be in trouble.
