HAWK TO BE RESIGNED

[retailguy]

Nice that my Hawk jersey won't go out of style for a while.

He's coming back as #47, which he wore at Ohio State.


























Just kidding.

[RashanGary]

Green Bay's best looking couple seen strutting their stuff on the Green Carpet after their big new deal.

[KYPack]

Clam presence.

That one has to go down in some sort of Rat Hall of Fame.

Skin got to talk dirty, this thread is a classic.

I guess this is the part where Mad swoops in and calls us all fucking Crackers, right?

[Joemailman]

“The culture here is amazing,” Hawk said. “I talk to people around the league, friends who are with other teams, and I don’t think there’s any place in the league that compares to Green Bay. And being here gives me the best chance at winning more Super Bowls.”

I guess we didn't need to worry about Hawk going home to play for one of the Ohio NFL teams.

[King Friday]

I guess we didn't need to worry about Hawk going home to play for one of the Ohio NFL teams.

He already played for the best football team in Ohio, and his eligibility has run out.

[pbmax]

I guess that makes sense. It does start my brain wondering in a different direction, though. None of what Silverstein describes is new in NFL contract law. I wonder what possessed the team to agree to a $10M last year in his first contract if they knew back then that it couldn't be easily restructured? The timing issues and the expiring CPA don't affect the restructuring limitations, so why would they agree to something that was almost certainly (unless Hawk developed into the second coming of LT) going to force them to cut him? It sounds to me suspiciously like the Shermy administration's "Wahle logic" that put TT in a bind the year before they drafted Hawk.

Actually, it was exactly Wahle logic if reports are to be believed. It was intentional and gave the Packers a reason to end the contract early and gave Hawk either a replacement for a second contract bonus (one year early) or the chance to hit FA and his second contract one year earlier and receive guaranteed money in the new contract.

[pbmax]

He already played for the best football team in Ohio, and his eligibility has run out.

Nicely done.

[Fritz]

Actually, it was exactly Wahle logic if reports are to be believed. It was intentional and gave the Packers a reason to end the contract early and gave Hawk either a replacement for a second contract bonus (one year early) or the chance to hit FA and his second contract one year earlier and receive guaranteed money in the new contract.

The difference in the situations from a wider context is that TT has positioned the team's finances such that he could then afford to re-sign Hawk, while Shermy-the-GM positioned the team's finances such that it would've been crippling to give a left guard the kind of contract Wahle wanted.

[pbmax]

The difference in the situations from a wider context is that TT has positioned the team's finances such that he could then afford to re-sign Hawk, while Shermy-the-GM positioned the team's finances such that it would've been crippling to give a left guard the kind of contract Wahle wanted.

True. Though if Hawk had people chasing him like they were Wahle, even Thompson this year would have been hard pressed to meet that contract, especially given the uncertainty of the eventual cap number.

Wahle and Rivera were beneficiaries of the last great wave of huge up front money in contracts. They hit it big by being UFAs in 2005 rather than just a couple years later.

[Patler]

True. Though if Hawk had people chasing him like they were Wahle, even Thompson this year would have been hard pressed to meet that contract, especially given the uncertainty of the eventual cap number.

Wahle and Rivera were beneficiaries of the last great wave of huge up front money in contracts. They hit it big by being UFAs in 2005 rather than just a couple years later.

That's how Sherman really screwed up. He had both Wahle and Rivera due the same year, and no suitable backup guard on the roster. The position guard was completely void. TT has Jenkins in a similar situation this year where it might be hard to keep him, but he has Pickett signed long term and a couple promising reserves in Neal and Wilson even without Green or Jolly. If he couldn't retain Hawk, he had Barnett. There are players on the roster to fill the spots. Sherman had no backup plan for replacing both guards in the same year.

[Iron Mike]

Per Tom Silverstein at the JS:

Linebacker A.J. Hawk has a new contract.

Hawk's agent, Mike McCartney, said Thursday that the final touches on the deal were completed and that Hawk would sign a five-year deal with the Packers.

Full terms of the contract weren't known, but an NFL source tracking the deal told me my estimate of $6 million to $7 million per year and $10 million guaranteed is about right. We'll know the full details of the contract in a day or two.

Isn't that Paul McCartney's brother???

[swede]

Let it be.

[Fritz]

True. Though if Hawk had people chasing him like they were Wahle, even Thompson this year would have been hard pressed to meet that contract, especially given the uncertainty of the eventual cap number.

Wahle and Rivera were beneficiaries of the last great wave of huge up front money in contracts. They hit it big by being UFAs in 2005 rather than just a couple years later.

I agree with your last statement, absolutely, I do wonder, though, if Hawk's agent, Mike "Brother of Paul" McCartney is to be believed when he said that the phone was ringing off the hook - teams wanted to get in on the bidding, it would seem.

My own belief is that Hawk and Wahle are different people - Hawk seemed to really want to be here (even after he coulda played the whole "disrespect" card after not playing that what, first game, at all?), while Wahle really seemed to want a big contract in part as a sign of respect - that ever elusive respect. He seemed, at times, to have felt slighted or unappreciated in GB, maybe? Or maybe the rumors that he didn't get along with Shermy were true. I don't know. But Wahle seemed to want a big paycheck as proof of respect, whereas Hawk seems to be a little more at ease with himself regarding his contributions to the team.

Okay, Dr. Fritz is ready for his reality show now. Bring on the athletes, and Dr. Fritz will explain their deep psychological needs and why they do what they do. First guest: the former Ochocinco.

[pbmax]

I agree with your last statement, absolutely, I do wonder, though, if Hawk's agent, Mike "Brother of Paul" McCartney is to be believed when he said that the phone was ringing off the hook - teams wanted to get in on the bidding, it would seem.

My own belief is that Hawk and Wahle are different people - Hawk seemed to really want to be here (even after he coulda played the whole "disrespect" card after not playing that what, first game, at all?), while Wahle really seemed to want a big contract in part as a sign of respect - that ever elusive respect. He seemed, at times, to have felt slighted or unappreciated in GB, maybe? Or maybe the rumors that he didn't get along with Shermy were true. I don't know. But Wahle seemed to want a big paycheck as proof of respect, whereas Hawk seems to be a little more at ease with himself regarding his contributions to the team.

Okay, Dr. Fritz is ready for his reality show now. Bring on the athletes, and Dr. Fritz will explain their deep psychological needs and why they do what they do. First guest: the former Ochocinco.

I think Wahle's motivations were less complex. He wanted a really big contract because it comes hand delivered with a lot of cash. And Hawk was probably thinking along those same lines. Hawk came closer to a Wahle score than I thought he would. Adjusted for inflation, Wahle's $12-13 million guaranteed still trumps Hawk's $10 mil, but not a bad haul for a player people were wondering about being released after Game 1 this season.

Wahle privately was said to be upset that the Packer coaches were always talking up Rivera for the Pro Bowl, but had the Packers matched the contract, I bet he would have been happy to endure the disrespect.

[Patler]

Wahle privately was said to be upset that the Packer coaches were always talking up Rivera for the Pro Bowl, but had the Packers matched the contract, I bet he would have been happy to endure the disrespect.

Didn't Wahle complain in his last season about being the only O-lineman who hadn't been the subject of a game-day program cover at least once? He seemed to find hidden messages in that sort of thing.