The Green Bay Packers have been at the center of surprising moves over the last few off-seasons. Last off-season we saw the Packers trade away Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders. Of course, this off-season was headlined by the Aaron Rodgers trade as well as many veterans the team chose not to re-sign.
Today it was reported that one of the Packers’ NFC Rivals made a surprising move of their own. A move that could actually intrigue the Packers.
The Atlanta Falcons Surprisingly Release Starting Safety Jaylinn Hawkins
According to Dave Choate of the Falcons Insider:
The Falcons can surprise you in ways both large and small, but most of the time they’re doing that on the field. Cutting Jaylinn Hawkins before the seventh week of the season? That’s that rare off-the-field surprise.
Per NFL reporter Aaron Wilson, the team has released Hawkins on Tuesday, with the 26-year-old safety now looking for a new team unless the Falcons can sneak him back on to the practice squad. My guess is that they didn’t make this move intending to do so, and that even if they did, they won’t have much luck.
Hawkins didn’t have much of a role this year under new defensive coordinator Ryan Nielsen, with DeMarcco Hellams drawing more snaps in two of the past three weeks on defense, but had been a core piece of the puzzle on special teams until this past week.
He was one of the players who had a role in Atlanta’s blown coverage on Jamison Crowder’s huge punt return, but again, it’s hard to see any one thing that might’ve precipitated a cut.
At worst, Hawkins was experienced, solid depth and a familiar face for special teams coordinator Marquice Williams, so this can’t really be spun as anything but a shock.
Still just 26 years old and less than a full season removed from starting for the Falcons, Hawkins shouldn’t have much trouble finding a new home, assuming there isn’t some major issue that prompted this release that we’re simply not aware of. I
t’s fair to wonder if this move comes before the Falcons make a roster addition via trade of pickup, but either way, it seems unlikely Hawkins will be back with Atlanta given his experience and potential value for other teams hunting for safety depth.
Could The Green Bay Packers Be Interested In Jaylinn Hawkins?
Hawkins started all 16 games for the Falcons in 2022. It was fairly surprising to see this release happen. The Packers continue to search for a long-term plan at Safety and a 26-year-old with over 20 career starts at the position may be too good to pass up. Many fans even assumed Hawkins would be traded rather than just let go.
With his play over the summer, Rudy Ford won the starting safety position battle, and through five games, he has helped provide some stability for the Packers:
“He’s just doing his job,” said Packers safeties coach Ryan Downard on Monday. “He’s doing it at a high level. He’s playing hard. When you turn that tape on, you see how hard he plays. He’s very intentional with his preparation, and he’s finally gotten the opportunity to show what he can do, and he’s capitalizing on it.”
The Packers very well could be interested in adding another safety to pair with Ford for the rest of the season.
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