I would say things might be a little different this year. Capers and McCarthy have to do whatever is necessary to put a much better defense on the field this year. Hawk may very well begin as the starter but if he is not getting it done they will move somebody in there.
Last year they had too many players like Hawk out there on the D. AVERAGE. Nobody making big plays. We had too many AVERAGE Dlinemen in the rotation, Hawk, the ROLB, corners, and DB's, all AVERAGE performances.This equated to a lousy overall performance by the D.
I heard a quote from Peprah that really set me off. He felt like he was a scapegoat for a lot of the poor play on D last year and said something like "well, I didn't give up any more bad plays than the other DB's". WHAT? When a player rationalizes that they played no worse than equally as bad as the others you have a PROBLEM.
I see it this way. Hawk will start and as long as there is considerable improvement in the D overall that will continue to be the case. However, if he struggles and the D is struggling they have no choice but to put somebody else in there. Forget TT. He wont' have a say in it. Capers and McCarthy are going to get this thing turned around and if Hawk ain't helping them do it they will sit his *** down.
IMO Hawk has gotten too muscle bound. He's lost leverage, balance, and, agility, in the process. Not what he was in college. They say they can't keep the guy out of the weight room.