The New England Patriots are certainly entering a new era. When they 2024 season finally begins, they will have a new quarterback after trading former first round pick Mac Jones to his hometown team, the Jacksonville Jaguars. Of course, the 2024 season will also mark the franchise’s first season without legendary head coach Bill Belichick, who led the team to six Super Bowl titles during his tenure.
Under the leadership of Jerod Mayo, the Patriots, who finished last season 4-13, will look to begin rebuilding the team to its former glory. With the third overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, they have plenty of options and will, presumably, take either one of the top quarterbacks or Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. Still, they also need to address several holes on defense.
The New England Patriots Have a Standard to Uphold on Defense
Last season, the Patriots finished with seventh-best overall defense (in terms of yards allowed per game) in the NFL. Their 208.4 passing yards allowed per game ranked 11th in the league and and their 93.2 rushing yards allowed per game ranked fourth.
Under Coach Belichick, the Patriots have historically had great defenses, even in years in which the team as a whole was not that good. Coach Mayo, who also is a defensive-minded coach, is likely to try and continue that trend.
Unfortunately, the team has some work to do in order to continue that trend. Of the five safeties that the Patriots had on their 2023 roster, only one, Joshua Bledsoe, remains.
The New England Patriots Signed Jaylinn Hawkins on Thursday
On Thursday morning, NFL Network reporter Mike Garafolo incorrectly posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the Carolina Panthers had signed free agent safety Jaylinn Hawkins.
He shortly thereafter corrected himself, reporting that it was the Patriots, not the Panthers, who signed Hawkins:
Screwed that one up. The #Patriots are signing former #Falcons and #Chargers S Jaylinn Hawkins, sources say. Not the #Panthers, as I’d previously posted. Misread a text. Apologies on that one.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 21, 2024
A former fourth round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft by the Atlanta Falcons, Hawkins comes in as an above-average run defender, which suits the Patriots’ defensive style. Last season, PFF gave him a 70.1 run grade, the best mark of his career. Hawkins also graded well as a tackler, registering a 74.3 grade in 2024.
Jaylinn Hawkins Has Seen Most of His Playing Time on Special Teams
The only year of Hawkins’ career in which he played over 50% of his team’s defensive snaps was in 2022 when he played a whopping 92% of those plays. He finished that year 84 tackles, two interceptions, and a forced fumble. However, he also allowed a 65.8% completion percentage and quarterbacks had a 106.4 passer rating when targeting him.
Last season, the Falcons waived Hawkins after six games. He appeared in just 8% of the defense’s snaps, but 81% of their special teams snaps. He was then picked up by the Los Angeles Chargers where he played 17% of the defensive snaps and 47% of the special teams snaps.
Based on these numbers, it makes sense to assume that Hawkins will fit in well on special teams and on run-specific plays on defense. However, the Patriots still need to find quality safeties to fill their depth chart. With most of the best players at that position off of the market, it will be a position that they will undoubtedly hit hard in the 2024 NFL Draft.
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