Notre Dame football captain Xavier Watts on what this team proved
Notre Dame football safety/captain Xavier Watts says the national runners-up showed they can play with anybody after 13-game win streak ends vs. Ohio State
INDIANAPOLIS — As two-time All-American safety Xavier Watts puts himself through the pre-draft process, he does so armed with some valuable advice from his Notre Dame football predecessor.
What did Baltimore Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton tell Watts?
“Just be yourself,” Watts recalled recently at the NFL Scouting Combine. “You don’t have to be anybody different. Especially with the (team) interviews. Just go in there, be yourself, don’t try to be anybody you’re not.”
Hamilton, coming off a season-ending knee issue in his third and final season with the Irish, went 14th overall to the Ravens in the 2022 NFL Draft. Hamilton has quickly blossomed into one of the game’s top defensive weapons, with a pair of Pro Bowl selections and an All-Pro designation.
Now it’s Watts who finds himself slotted solidly in the top 50 projected picks for the April 24-26 draft in Green Bay, Wis.
After five years in South Bend, Watts heads to the pros with 13 career interceptions and a reputation for durability, leadership, and impact plays. Coming off a 16-game march to the College Football Playoff final, Watts also had the self-confidence to pass up an invitation to the Senior Bowl.
Likewise, he joined several Irish teammates in opting not to test or run through drills at the Combine in late February. The 6-foot, 204-pound Watts will save that portion of the beauty pageant for Notre Dame’s annual Pro Day later this month.
“It’s about taking care of your body and making sure your body is good to go,” Watts said. “I didn’t want to pressure myself to go out there and do something I didn’t feel like I wanted to do because of my body.
“I had a really long season. I didn’t want to go out there and push anything that I didn’t need to go through. I’m confident in my abilities that I’ll be fine without some of those things and confident that I’ll crush the interviews.”
Where Xavier Watts ranks among NFL safety prospects
Voted a team captain in 2024 after winning the Nagurski Award as the nation’s top defensive player the previous season, Watts has transformed himself over the years.
A former wide receiver plucked from Omaha, Neb., Watts has emerged from his soft-spoken nature to become a vocal leader on the field and off.
Notre Dame football GM Mike Martin on scouting director Matt Jansen
Prior work history with Irish scouting director Matt Jansen expedites the process for Notre Dame football GM Mike Martin, formerly of the Detroit Lions
His production and game-changing ability have him ranked third at his position among draft candidates, trailing only Georgia’s Malaki Starks and South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori.
Then again, it should be noted, Watts came down with more interceptions the past two seasons than the 12 that Starks and Emmanwori managed (six apiece) over their combined six seasons at the college level.
“To win the football game, you have to get the ball,” Watts said. “When I’m out there, I’m always trying to get the ball.”
Watts also owns a 2-0 career mark head-to-head against the Bulldogs and the Gamecocks, claiming wins in the Sugar and Gator Bowls. That doesn’t happen without a steadying presence on the back end of a defense.
“You have to communicate,” Watts said. “I was like a really quiet guy (early on). If you want to be out there on the football field, you have to communicate to win the game.”
That ability to talk through all sorts of scenarios and express himself in front of NFL coaches and personnel types now comes naturally to Watts. After playing the past three seasons in Al Golden’s defensive system, Watts already has the faith of the Cincinnati Bengals’ new defensive coordinator.
Meeting with the Pittsburgh Steelers and longtime coach Mike Tomlin at the Combine was another pre-draft moment to savor.
“It was a good conversation,” Watts said. “Coach Tomlin was really cool. The whole staff was really good. Just sitting there chopping it up with those guys was awesome.”
How Xavier Watts tackles the tackling question
While Hamilton (6-4, 220 pounds) has made himself into an all-field problem for opposing offenses, piling up 107 tackles and a dozen quarterback pressures last season, Watts often hears questions from NFL scouts about missed tackles and his blitzing ability.
After cutting his missed tackle rate from 18.8% in 2023 to 12.6% last season, Watts has a ready-made answer for teams when that subject is raised.
“Obviously, I’m an aggressive player, so sometimes I take aggressive angles,” he said. “(Teams) question sometimes what I do when it comes to tackling.”
The image of Penn State tight end Tyler Warren (6-5, 256 pounds) plowing through Watts early in the Orange Bowl semifinal remains vivid, but so does the fact that Watts helped his injury-riddled team come out on top in a 27-24 classic. And there’s no shame in losing a one-on-one rep against a freak athlete projected for the top 10 picks in this draft.
“He’s a really talented player, a really big guy,” Watts said. “Having to prepare for a certain player like that, I know at the next level everybody on the field is a good player. Some guys are like superstars, and they’re going to game plan to get them the ball. Having that experience with Tyler Warren was similar to what I’m going to try to get in the NFL.”
As for what NFL teams would be getting in Watts, the answer goes well beyond the field.
“The type of person I am, I’m really caring and I’m really trustworthy,” Watts said. “All the teammates I’m going to be around, I want them to trust me. I want them to know I care for them. I want to work every day for them. I’m not trying to get stats or anything. I want to go out there and play for the program.”
Mike Berardino covers Notre Dame football for the South Bend Tribune and NDInsider.com. Follow him on social media @MikeBerardino.
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