The Patriots entered free agency with few top stars testing the market, making roster upgrades easier, but some key contributors were not retained. Safety Jaylinn Hawkins, coming off the best season of his career, left New England and signed with the Ravens. The Patriots instead pursued Kevin Byard III, a top available safety, influenced by his connection to Mike Vrabel and his Pro Bowl season with the Bears. Hawkins expressed surprise at not being re-signed, saying he and his wife expected to return after a strong year. He acknowledged that free agency can go either way, and he is happy in Baltimore, using the situation as motivation.
"“I mean, to be honest, I mean, I was surprised (about not signing with Patriots). I mean, me and my wife were both surprised. I'm pretty sure we were kind of like ... we anticipated coming off a good season and stuff like that, we'll be back (in New England), but you never know how things go. You never know what God has planned and, like, free agency, you know what I'm saying? It can go either way. So it is what it is, but I'm happy (in Baltimore) for sure.”"
"It appears the Patriots decided to go after one of the top available safeties among the group of free agents, Kevin Byard III, due to his connection to Mike Vrabel and the fact that he was coming off a Pro Bowl season with the Bears."
"Although it's difficult to be upset about signing Byard, given his history and how productive he is, it was still disappointing to see Hawkins wasn't retained after all he proved to be the real deal for the Patriots' defense."
Read at Musket Fire
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]