Deshaun Watson has the opportunity to play in the Reese's Senior Bowl. Will the Clemson QB take advantage of it?
"I'm not sure yet," Watson said on Saturday at media day for the national championship game. "My focus is on the national championship and we'll figure all that out afterwards."
Senior Bowl executive director Phil Savage revealed on Friday during an interview with ESPN 850 in Cleveland that Watson, who intends to enter the 2017 NFL Draft, has been invited to participate in the annual all-star game, which will be coached by the staffs of the Bears and Browns. Savage said Watson will play for the South team, which will be coached by the Browns staff, if he accepts the invitation. NFL Network will have exclusive coverage of the Senior Bowl, which is held in Mobile, Ala., on Jan. 28 at 2:30 p.m. ET.
The QB is currently preparing for Monday night's title game in Tampa, where Clemson will meet Alabama in a title-game rematch.
"It's special. It's an honor," Watson said of the invitation. "It's a great opportunity for me and the family."
Watson is a third-year junior, but Savage said he's eligible to play in a game that is reserved for seniors and fourth-year juniors who have graduated because he has already graduated.
The Senior Bowl is an opportunity for prospects to go through a week of practices and meetings with NFL teams before participating in the all-star game.
The Browns hold pick Nos. 1 and 12 in the first round of the draft, so Watson will have a chance to impress one of the league's most QB-needy teams, and one that could make him the draft's top pick, if he attends.
Michigan DL Taco Charlton is the only player known to have declined a Senior Bowl invitation this year. Connor Cook, who'll start for the Raiders in their playoff game Saturday vs. the Texans, declined an invitation to the Senior Bowl last year.
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