Rockmolder
14 years ago
While Clay Matthews shines, A.J. Hawk is nowhere to be found 

By Gregg Rosenthal

Packers linebacker Clay Matthews shook off his inactive preseason like he shook off Eagles blockers Sunday, leading the Green Bay defense during a superlative defense.

Matthews finished with two sacks, a forced fumble, and seven tackles, including the game-clinching stuff of Michael Vick.

"There's a lot of rust I need to shake off. It was a good way to start the season, let's just leave it at that," Mathews said after the game.

While the team's 2009 first-round pick built off his fabulous rookie season, the No. 4 overall pick didn't play a single snap on defense. A.J. Hawk only plays in Green Bay's base defense. Since the Packers played in their nickel or dime packages all day, Hawk only played on special teams.

Hawk's lack of a role on passing downs is nothing new. But it still says something when a guy making $4.6 million doesn't play a snap on defense all day.

It also says we should probably change our definition of what's a "base defense" in today's NFL.

Since69
14 years ago
Hawk plays in the base defense - we were in the nickel all day. That's why Chillar was in and Hawk wasn't.

Hawk will rip some heads off next week against the Bills...
UserPostedImage
peteralan71
14 years ago

Hawk will rip some heads off next week against the Bills...

"Since69" wrote:



Not so sure I agree with you on that one. Hawk started his career at GB with energy and a killer attitude, but since then he has dwindled considerably. His tackles for the last four yrs have been 119, 105, 86, and 89. I just don't think that he'll have another killer year, esp with CM3 being a freak, and Brad Jones coming up in the ranks.
Green Bay: Home of the Green & Gold. And the hunter orange. And the camouflage.
UserPostedImage
evad04
14 years ago

Hawk will rip some heads off next week against the Bills...

"peteralan71" wrote:



Not so sure I agree with you on that one. Hawk started his career at GB with energy and a killer attitude, but since then he has dwindled considerably. His tackles for the last four yrs have been 119, 105, 86, and 89. I just don't think that he'll have another killer year, esp with CM3 being a freak, and Brad Jones coming up in the ranks.

"Since69" wrote:


Once again, there's an explanation for the decline in tackles. Green Bay plays a significant amount of sub packages (five DBs) on defense. Hawk has played some in the nickel packages, but he's predominantly used as a ILB in their base 3-4 defense.

When he was drafted, he played OLB in a base 4-3. He also played in a greater portion of sub packages.

What is there NOT to understand? He isn't on the field as much, hence the decline in tackles.

This article -- hell, this overall perception -- about Hawk is already tiring and we just finished week 1. I firmly believe that if you went into McCarthy's office, or Capers' office, or Kevin Greene's office and asked them about A.J. Hawk they would have positive things to say. You wouldn't here, "Well, Matthews looked great out there today. A.J. didn't."

Two long-locked blonde LBs who DON'T PLAY THE SAME POSITION sure are compared a lot to one another -- and unnecessarily if you ask me. Rosenthal sure did his homework. Didn't know Hawk went 4th in the draft :crazy:
William Henderson didn't have to run people over. His preferred method was levitation.
"I'm a reasonable man, get off my case."
Zero2Cool
14 years ago
Winston Moss would be whom you'd talk to about Hawk, not our OLB coach, Kevin Greene. 😛
UserPostedImage
bozz_2006
14 years ago

Hawk will rip some heads off next week against the Bills...

"evad04" wrote:



Not so sure I agree with you on that one. Hawk started his career at GB with energy and a killer attitude, but since then he has dwindled considerably. His tackles for the last four yrs have been 119, 105, 86, and 89. I just don't think that he'll have another killer year, esp with CM3 being a freak, and Brad Jones coming up in the ranks.

"peteralan71" wrote:


Once again, there's an explanation for the decline in tackles. Green Bay plays a significant amount of sub packages (five DBs) on defense. Hawk has played some in the nickel packages, but he's predominantly used as a ILB in their base 3-4 defense.

When he was drafted, he played OLB in a base 4-3. He also played in a greater portion of sub packages.

What is there NOT to understand? He isn't on the field as much, hence the decline in tackles.

This article -- hell, this overall perception -- about Hawk is already tiring and we just finished week 1. I firmly believe that if you went into McCarthy's office, or Capers' office, or Kevin Greene's office and asked them about A.J. Hawk they would have positive things to say. You wouldn't here, "Well, Matthews looked great out there today. A.J. didn't."

Two long-locked blonde LBs who DON'T PLAY THE SAME POSITION sure are compared a lot to one another -- and unnecessarily if you ask me. Rosenthal sure did his homework. Didn't know Hawk went 4th in the draft :crazy:

"Since69" wrote:



So, uh, why do you think he's not being played? :crazy: Yeah, if he was on the field more, he'd get more tackles. But if he was one of our best options at LB, he'd get his PT. I am sure you're right. If you ask the coaches about Hawk's play, they'd say positive things... because his play is one dimensional. They've already tested the theory and it's held true. They'd have positive things to say about the one role they have for him. He is good at eating up blockers. If you specifically asked the coaches about his blitzing, pursuit, or pass coverage do you really think they'd have positive things to say? If they did, he'd have seen more than zero defensive plays yesterday.
UserPostedImage
porky88
14 years ago
The had to play nickel. They didn't have enough defensive lineman to play base and you can't play base vs. Mike Vick.
http://www.row12.com/ 
UserPostedImage
evad04
14 years ago

Hawk will rip some heads off next week against the Bills...

"bozz_2006" wrote:



Not so sure I agree with you on that one. Hawk started his career at GB with energy and a killer attitude, but since then he has dwindled considerably. His tackles for the last four yrs have been 119, 105, 86, and 89. I just don't think that he'll have another killer year, esp with CM3 being a freak, and Brad Jones coming up in the ranks.

"evad04" wrote:


Once again, there's an explanation for the decline in tackles. Green Bay plays a significant amount of sub packages (five DBs) on defense. Hawk has played some in the nickel packages, but he's predominantly used as a ILB in their base 3-4 defense.

When he was drafted, he played OLB in a base 4-3. He also played in a greater portion of sub packages.

What is there NOT to understand? He isn't on the field as much, hence the decline in tackles.

This article -- hell, this overall perception -- about Hawk is already tiring and we just finished week 1. I firmly believe that if you went into McCarthy's office, or Capers' office, or Kevin Greene's office and asked them about A.J. Hawk they would have positive things to say. You wouldn't here, "Well, Matthews looked great out there today. A.J. didn't."

Two long-locked blonde LBs who DON'T PLAY THE SAME POSITION sure are compared a lot to one another -- and unnecessarily if you ask me. Rosenthal sure did his homework. Didn't know Hawk went 4th in the draft :crazy:

"peteralan71" wrote:



So, uh, why do you think he's not being played? :crazy: Yeah, if he was on the field more, he'd get more tackles. But if he was one of our best options at LB, he'd get his PT. I am sure you're right. If you ask the coaches about Hawk's play, they'd say positive things... because his play is one dimensional. They've already tested the theory and it's held true. They'd have positive things to say about the one role they have for him. He is good at eating up blockers. If you specifically asked the coaches about his blitzing, pursuit, or pass coverage do you really think they'd have positive things to say? If they did, he'd have seen more than zero defensive plays yesterday.

"Since69" wrote:


I don't agree with your assessment about Hawk's ability. Hawk is not Green Bay's best option for nickel defense. That doesn't mean he isn't a nice option at LB -- it means for defenses that feature only 2 LBs (you can essentially count the OLBs with their hands in the dirt as DEs) he isn't the best option.

Hawk had a solid year in '09. Yeah, not super flashy, but an improvement upon '08 no doubt.

But hey, let's trade him and stick Desmond Bishop in there, knowing as we do that he's an absolute dynamo and NEVER looks bad in coverage.
William Henderson didn't have to run people over. His preferred method was levitation.
"I'm a reasonable man, get off my case."
LambeauEast
14 years ago
I want the 11 best guys defensively on the field that I do the offense. If our best 11 for any situation doesn't include A.J., then I'm good with it. He will get his time, and do so effectively, but until then....let it ride!
UserPostedImage
go.pack.go.
14 years ago
I hate people that hate on Hawk. What did he do that is making people so mad at him? He has been a solid linebacker for us every since he got here, and he has been a pro about everything. You don't see him complaining about not getting a lot of playing time, do you?
UserPostedImage
Similar Topics
Users browsing this topic
    Fan Shout
    Zero2Cool (5h) : Could ban beast and I still don't think anyone catches him.
    Mucky Tundra (19h) : Houston getting dog walked by Baltimore
    packerfanoutwest (25-Dec) : Feliz Navidad!
    Zero2Cool (25-Dec) : Merry Christmas!
    beast (25-Dec) : Merry Christmas 🎄🎁
    beast (24-Dec) : Sounds like no serious injuries from the Saints game and Jacobs and Watson should play in the Vikings game
    packerfanoutwest (24-Dec) : both games Watson missed, Packers won
    Martha Careful (24-Dec) : I hope all of you have a Merry Christmas!
    Mucky Tundra (24-Dec) : Oh I know about Jacobs, I just couldn't pass up an opportunity to mimic Zero lol
    buckeyepackfan (24-Dec) : Jacobs was just sat down, Watson re-injured that knee that kept him out 1 game earlier
    buckeyepackfan (24-Dec) : I needed .14 that's. .14 points for the whole 4th quarter to win and go to the SB. Lol
    Mucky Tundra (24-Dec) : Jacobs gonna be OK???
    Zero2Cool (24-Dec) : Watson gonna be OK???
    packerfanoutwest (24-Dec) : Inactives tonight for the Pack: Alexander- knee Bullard - ankle Williams - quad Walker -ankle Monk Heath
    packerfanoutwest (24-Dec) : No Jaire, but hopefully the front 7 destroys the line of scrimmage & forces Rattler into a few passes to McKinney.
    packerfanoutwest (24-Dec) : minny could be #1 seed and the Lions #5 seed
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : We'd have same Division and Conference records. Strength of schedule we edge them
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : I just checked. What tie breaker?
    bboystyle (23-Dec) : yes its possible but unlikely. If we do get the 5th, we face the NFCS winner
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : Ahh, ok.
    bboystyle (23-Dec) : yes due to tie breaker
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : I mean, unlikely, yes, but mathematically, 5th is possible by what I'm reading.
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : If Vikings lose out, Packers win out, Packers get 5th, right?
    bboystyle (23-Dec) : Minny isnt going to lose out so 5th seed is out of the equation. We are playing for the 6th or 7th seed which makes no difference
    Mucky Tundra (23-Dec) : beast, the ad revenue goes to the broadcast company but they gotta pay to air the game on their channel/network
    beast (23-Dec) : If we win tonight the game is still relative in terms of 5th, 6th or 7th seed... win and it's 5th or 6th, lose and it's 6th or 7th
    beast (23-Dec) : Mucky, I thought the ad revenue went to the broadcasting companies or the NFL, at least not directly
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : I think the revenue share is moot, isn't it? That's the CBA an Salary Cap handling that.
    bboystyle (23-Dec) : i mean game becomes irrelevant if we win tonight. Just a game where we are trying to play spoilers to Vikings chance at the #1 seed
    Mucky Tundra (23-Dec) : beast, I would guess ad revenue from more eyes watching tv
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : I would think it would hurt the home team because people would have to cancel last minute maybe? i dunno
    beast (23-Dec) : I agree that it's BS for fans planning on going to the game. But how does it bring in more money? I'm guessing indirectly?
    packerfanoutwest (23-Dec) : bs on flexing the game....they do it for the $$league$$, not the hometown fans
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : I see what you did there Mucky
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : dammit. 3:25pm
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : Packers Vikings flexed to 3:35pm
    Mucky Tundra (23-Dec) : Upon receiving the news about Luke Musgrave, I immediately fell to the ground
    Mucky Tundra (23-Dec) : Yeah baby!
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : LUKE MUSGRAVE PLAYING TONIGHT~!~~~~WOWHOAAOHAOAA yah
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : I wanna kill new QB's ... blitz the crap out of them.
    beast (23-Dec) : Barry seemed to get too conservative against new QBs, Hafley doesn't have that issue
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : However, we seem to struggle vs new QB's
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : Should be moot point, cuz Packers should win tonight.
    packerfanoutwest (23-Dec) : ok I stand corrected
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : Ok, yes, you are right. I see that now how they get 7th
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : 5th - Packers win out, Vikings lose out. Maybe?
    beast (23-Dec) : Saying no to the 6th lock.
    beast (23-Dec) : No, with the Commanders beating the Eagles, Packers could have a good chance of 6th or 7th unless the win out
    Zero2Cool (23-Dec) : I think if Packers win, they are locked 6th with chance for 5th.
    beast (23-Dec) : But it doesn't matter, as the Packers win surely win one of their remaining games
    Please sign in to use Fan Shout
    2024 Packers Schedule
    Friday, Sep 6 @ 7:15 PM
    Eagles
    29 - 34
    Sunday, Sep 15 @ 12:00 PM
    COLTS
    16 - 10
    Sunday, Sep 22 @ 12:00 PM
    Titans
    30 - 14
    Sunday, Sep 29 @ 12:00 PM
    VIKINGS
    29 - 31
    Sunday, Oct 6 @ 3:25 PM
    Rams
    24 - 19
    Sunday, Oct 13 @ 12:00 PM
    CARDINALS
    34 - 13
    Sunday, Oct 20 @ 12:00 PM
    TEXANS
    24 - 22
    Sunday, Oct 27 @ 12:00 PM
    Jaguars
    30 - 27
    Sunday, Nov 3 @ 3:25 PM
    LIONS
    14 - 24
    Sunday, Nov 17 @ 12:00 PM
    Bears
    20 - 19
    Sunday, Nov 24 @ 3:25 PM
    49ERS
    38 - 10
    Thursday, Nov 28 @ 7:20 PM
    DOLPHINS
    30 - 17
    Thursday, Dec 5 @ 7:15 PM
    Lions
    31 - 34
    Sunday, Dec 15 @ 7:20 PM
    Seahawks
    30 - 13
    Monday, Dec 23 @ 7:15 PM
    SAINTS
    34 - 0
    Sunday, Dec 29 @ 3:25 PM
    Vikings
    Saturday, Jan 4 @ 11:00 PM
    BEARS
    Recent Topics
    1h / Green Bay Packers Talk / Zero2Cool

    25-Dec / Featured Content / Zero2Cool

    25-Dec / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

    25-Dec / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

    25-Dec / GameDay Threads / bboystyle

    24-Dec / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

    24-Dec / Random Babble / beast

    24-Dec / Green Bay Packers Talk / Zero2Cool

    23-Dec / Random Babble / Martha Careful

    22-Dec / Green Bay Packers Talk / packerfanoutwest

    19-Dec / Random Babble / Zero2Cool

    18-Dec / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

    17-Dec / Green Bay Packers Talk / wpr

    17-Dec / Featured Content / Zero2Cool

    16-Dec / Green Bay Packers Talk / beast

    Headlines
    Copyright © 2006 - 2024 PackersHome.com™. All Rights Reserved.