Q&A with New Saints LB David Hawthorne
 

Q: It seems like you’ve had your eye on the Saints for a couple weeks, what ultimately led to your decision?

A: “From management, to coaching on down, it seems like a great group of people with a great track record of success. It’s the type of program I want to be in where there is the opportunity to win consistently and compete for a championship.”

Q: You are the third linebacker to sign here in recent weeks, along with Curtis Lofton and Chris Chamberlain. What are your thoughts about coming in with the new guys and playing alongside the guys that have been here for a few seasons?

A: “I think myself and the other newcomers are looking forward to having the opportunity to coming into a program and with a group that has experienced so much success.”

Q: You earned the nickname “Heater” due to the way you play the game. Who gave you the nickname and how did it come about?

A: “I’ve had a nickname at every level I’ve been at. When I came to Seattle, I was an undrafted free agent who had to work hard both on defense and special teams and bring it every day. After I made some hard hits, I came to the sidelines and Lofa Tatupu gave it to me.”

Q: You made the NFL and the Seahawks as an undrafted rookie free agent and have gone on to be a starter the past two-and-half seasons. Talk a little bit about the challenges you faced as a free agent and how you view special teams because of the nature of a position like linebacker that calls for guys to contribute in a lot of different areas.

A: “I didn’t come in the most traditional way or the way people dream. I took the hard road. Coming from where I came from, I know you have to put your head down and go to work. All I was asking for was an opportunity to go out there and show people what I can bring to a team and a unit. In camp, guys like Lofa, Julian Peterson and Leroy Hill really took me under their wing and showed what they do and told me to keep it up. I had a lot of encouragement. I played football the way I wanted to play football. I didn’t want to have regrets about my play and everything would take care of itself.”

Q: When you visited the Saints you spent some time with Sean Payton, Steve Spagnuolo and Joe Vitt. What was your impression and what they’re trying to do defensively?

A: “They have a lot going for them. With the team they have one thing in mind in my talks with Coach Vitt and Coach Spagnuolo. They really let me know they wanted me to be a part of what they were doing. We talked mostly about football and got to know each other better as people. We kept the line of communication open between the sides and that’s why we are where we’re at today.”

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Q&A with New Saints LB David Hawthorne

The heater is going to make it hot in the Dome.

Seems like all 3 LB's we've signed have a rep for being a tackling machine.

Coincidence?

Thank the Lord. I was sick of watching our safeties play so close to the line with our linebackers dropping back playing safety. Now everyone can do their job.

It's gonna be interesting to see how Spags plays all the LB talent we have this year and where Harper fits in?

I don't see him having to play at the line so much...

Looks like spags isnt going to tolerate our shoddy "tackling" like GW did when all he taught was go for the ball don't tackle the player

If all these 3 are tackling machines our LB's will be the best group we've had for a while

Just curious what everybody thinks about this rotation:
CB-Jabarri Greer
CB-Patrick Robinson/Leigh Torrence
S-Roman Harper
S-Malcolm Jenkins
OLB-Chris Chamberlain/Jonathan Casillas
MLB-Curtis Lofton
OLB-Jonathan Vilma/David Hawthorne
DT-Brodrick Bunkley/Aubrayo Franklin
DT-Sedrick Ellis/Shaun Rogers/Mitch King
DE-Will Smith/Jeff Charlston/Turk Mcbride
DE-Cameron Jordan/Junior Galette

Looks like we really need a good cornerback and safety pick from the draft.

That is the reason why I talked about the possibility of moving away from the FS/SS scheme in the coming season if Harper gets suspended for a lengthy period of time.

I think f.e. Chamberlain could assume a OLB/SS hybrid role within the LB corps - he is a lot more athletic than people give him credit for and he could really prove to be a good pass coverage LB with solid tackling ability to boot.

This would leave both Jenkins and A-Q (assuming Harper is suspended) to play a LS/RS scheme with better support for the CBs.


I really like this signing of Hawthorne, and in the end, I would've probably picked him over Lofton if it would've been an either or type of a situation.

Some changes I would make to your suggestion... I can't believe you left out Wilson!

U left out Amaya @ FS behind Jenkins