Talk about a transformation. The Patriots had two highly-paid safeties leading their room when the spring started, and neither lasted very long. Jabril Peppers was released, and Kyle Dugger tore up his contract to facilitate an in-season trade to Pittsburgh, coincidentally to play alongside Peppers once again. Their removal from the roster was barely a blip on the radar by the time we got to the postseason. In fact, the only time I can remember even thinking about it was ... well, never. The Pats moved on to a veteran journeyman and a 4th-round rookie, and got better play than I expected from both. Of course, now they might need to replace one of them, depending on how free agency goes.
UNDER CONTRACT: Craig Woodson, Dell Pettus, Brenden Schooler, John Saunders Jr.
FREE AGENT: Jaylinn Hawkins
Let’s start with Hawkins. He made peanuts last year, relatively speaking, signing a make-good one-year deal for $2.5 million. He made good, for sure, far outearning that contract with his play. Hawkins had four interceptions, six passes defensed, 1.5 sacks, and a fumble recovery. He also added 71 tackles, 3 for loss. There may have been a partridge in a pear tree somewhere on the stat line as well.
Now comes free agency, where he is due for a nice raise. How much? Try eight figures per season. PFF estimates 3 for $33 million ($22.5 mil guaranteed). However, in talking to decision-makers around the league this past week, I got a more cloudy picture of how Hawkins is viewed, with one team telling me they thought he was a third safety (!).
Mike Vrabel, though, is a big believer in Hawkins, both as a player and for what he’s done for the culture. So when you consider that, and the fact that the 28-year-old is coming off a career year, he just might be the type of player they extend, and possibly, get him for less than that projected number (which would put him right around 15th amongst the highest-paid safeties in the league).
Hawkins’ running mate was a