The start of training camp was nothing out of the ordinary for the New England Patriots’ safety group. Kyle Dugger and Jabrill Peppers were the top two, with Jaylinn Hawkins as the primary third option and fourth-round rookie Craig Woodson leading the charge as a developmental prospect behind.
However, the established order was shaken up quite drastically last week. It started with Woodson getting extended reps with the starters, replacing Dugger in certain three-safety sets. From there, the situation
continued to evolve.
By the time New England traveled to Minnesota for a pair of joint practices and preseason game with the Vikings, Dugger had effectively been demoted to second-string. In his place, Hawkins moved into the No. 2 spot alongside Peppers, with Woodson as the third guy in the rotation now.
Speaking ahead of the first of those joint sessions, Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel gave insight into the recent safety usage, including how Dugger can return to the top-level defense.
“Just making sure that he’s where he needs to be and understanding the coverage concepts and everything we do,” Vrabel said of the longest-tenured Patriot on Wednesday. “Keep working and keep progressing. A lot of this is the guys that have earned a right to take a look with that first unit, and there’ll be different lineups and different things. So, just focus on the reps that you get.”
A second-round pick by the Patriots in the 2020 draft, Dugger started a total of 66 regular season and playoff games over his first five years in the NFL. At his peak, he was one of the most productive and versatile safeties in football and a central piece of New England’s defensive operation.
This led to him signing a four-year, $58 million contract extension last offseason. Since that deal, however, things have started going south. Dugger was hampered by a nagging ankle injury for most of the 2024 season, and has not had a smooth transition to the new defense introduced by Vrabel and coordinator Terrell Williams.
The same cannot be said about Hawkins. The second-year Patriot, who originally joined the team last offseason via stints with the Atlanta Falcons and Los Angeles Chargers, has been one of the beneficiaries of Dugger’s apparent struggles.
The 2020 fourth-round selection appeared in all 17 games during his first season with the club, serving as a part-time starter on defense and core special teamer. Even with a change of coaching staff and scheme, New England decided to retain the free agent in March, re-signing Hawkins via a one-year, $1.8 million deal.
Although the contract came with a combined $650,000 in guarantees, the 27-year-old was not guaranteed a spot on the roster upon re-signing with the Patriots. As Vrabel pointed out on Wednesday, however, he has taken advantage of the opportunities he was given; his role as the new top option next to Jabrill Peppers is concrete proof of that as well.
“He’s done a nice job of coming in, communicating and playing pretty much all the different techniques that we’ve asked these guys to do in the backend,” the Patriots’ coach explained. “He’s playing with some speed and with some physicality. You saw a couple passes out to the perimeter that he was on and tight coverage in the game. I just really evaluated him and decided to get him back from last year. He did a nice job and played all special teams, played a lot of defense when guys went down. He’s continuing to take advantage of his opportunities, and then we’ll see where that goes.”
Even though Hawkins finds himself in a better position than Dugger now, Vrabel himself has not closed the door on the 29-year-old working his way back into the starter group either.
“His attitude’s been great,” he said. “He’s had a long recovery in the offseason. He’s been out there, and he’s continued to get better and work. The more that he practices, the better he’s going to feel and the more it’s going to translate onto the football field.”
