Watson had a relatively good season in 2011 despite missing six weeks with a hamstring injury, earning 15 Brownlow votes and finishing runner-up in the Crichton Medal, losing out to up-and-coming third-year midfielder David Zaharakis.
Watson played his first competitive match in over eighteen months - and his first without being captain of the club since 2009 - when he and several of the other banned players made their return to the field against Collingwood in the 2017 pre-season.