Northern Illinois · W 40-0
No tackles.
Watson has tackles in 7 of Iowa’s 8 games: none against Northern Illinois.
“It used to be Deshaun Lee that I yelled at every play. Now it is Jaylen Watson. Progress baby.”
Jaylen Watson
Erases the deep middle of the field. Three seasons in the Iowa secondary to date. A game that shows it: 6 tackles against Ohio State — Week 5, 2026.
24 tackles · 0 sacks
Play style
Single-high range who erases the deep middle of the field.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Fans first named Jaylen Watson at Michigan.
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Last game (Wk 9): 3 tackles.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 7 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 2 | W 16-13vs Iowa State | 5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 3 | W 55-0vs Northern Iowa | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 20-19@ No. 18 Michigan | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 3 | |
| Wk 5 | L 14-31vs No. 5 Ohio State | 6 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 2 | Season-high 6 tackles |
| Wk 6 | W 41-24@ Washington | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 8 | L 10-13@ Minnesota | 4 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 30-0vs No. 25 Wisconsin | 3 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 24 | 17 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 7 |
Oct. 31 · W 30-0 vs Wisconsin, play by play
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
His game this year: coverage — 7 passes defended in the 7 games with play by play.
How Iowa’s defense played that day
Wisconsin’s 10 drives: 10 stopped (3 takeaways) · 0 scored.
4 tackles. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 5 for him; the box score credits 4.
2 tackles, including 1 pass broken up. His pass breakup on 3rd and 15 ended Washington’s drive (half).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Broke up a pass on 3rd and 15. Second quarter, up 27-3. Ended Washington’s drive (half).
6 tackles, including 2 passes broken up, tied for 2nd-most passes broken up in FBS that week.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles, including 3 passes broken up, tied for 5th-most passes broken up in FBS that week.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
1 tackle.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
5 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Ratings of the games shown run from -1 to +29 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
29%7 pass breakupsTackle volume
24tackles this seasonTFL rate
2%0 TFL24 tackles · 0.5 for loss · 7 pass breakups.
3 seasons under Kirk Ferentz — 23-11 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 7 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 3.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.8 |
| Road3g | 3.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 1.3 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-75g | 3.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.4 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 3.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Kirk Ferentz
Pass share
48.0%
240 pass / 260 run
Plays / game
62.5
8 games
Team sack rate
2.7%
258 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
About as many tackles a game as a typical FBS defensive back who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #145 at the position.
2026 is in progress.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coachPlayed every college season under Kirk Ferentz.
