After a wildly successful 2025 season, the Patriots entered free agency earlier this year, fortunate that few of their top stars were set to test the market. It made it much easier to start the roster upgrading process, but they didn't manage to retain some of their biggest contributors.
One of the top names that shockingly left was safety Jaylinn Hawkins, who had the best season of his career and presumably won a spot on the team for the upcoming season, only to sign with the Ravens instead.
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.
Hawkins felt that and has shared his feelings on the matter, and it might come back to haunt New England if he thrives with one of the biggest competitors in the AFC.
Jaylinn Hawkins has added motivation to play his best football yet with the Ravens
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.
He has shared similar sentiments with reporters since signing with the Ravens, and his shock at the Patriots' apparent lack of interest in keeping him around could be the chip on his shoulder to prove just how wrong they were to let him walk in free agency.
“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 would be fair to say that Hawkins isn't exactly a superstar player, so it's not like the Patriots are struggling in the absence of someone like Tom Brady.
However, the secondary was one of the strongest parts of their 2025 roster, so disrupting that by having Hawkins sign with a direct conference rival isn't exactly what Patriots fans were hoping for.
Presumably, Byard will help elevate the group, and there won't be a significant dropoff in production in Hawkins' absence, which is what they needed to ensure if Hawkins was going to leave. But at the same time, they only got him signed to a one-year deal, so Byard isn't a long-term solution, yet Hawkins could have been.
If he now goes on to have an even better season with the Ravens in 2026, it will look like a big mistake by the front office, especially if he uses their decision as more reason to perform his best.
Add us as a preferred source on Google