When Packers linebacker A.J. Hawk recently restructured his contract, it wasn’t the type of restructuring that moves money around for cap purposes. Instead, it moved money out of his pocket in 2013.
According to Pete Dougherty of the Green Bay Press-Gazette, Hawk’s new deal includes a pay cut of almost $2 million. Along the way, a $2.21 million roster bonus became fully guaranteed, which as Dougherty surmises means that Hawk will be in the team’s plans for 2013.
But the house at inside linebacker is getting crowded, with Brad Jones, Desmond Bishop, Terrell Manning, Robert Francois, and Jamari Lattimore also in the mix. Then there’s D.J. Smith, who started the first six games of the 2012 season before tearing up his knee.
Competition could make the best of the bunch even better, which the Packers will need if they hope to advance beyond the divisional round of the playoffs, the level at which they’ve been stuck for two straight years.