Packers Must Aggressively Address ILB Position After AJ Hawk Release

The Green Bay Packers came oh-so-close to the Super Bowl a year ago, squandering a big lead in the NFC Championship Game in the most heartbreaking manner possible.

Part of that collapse was due to the Packers' inability to stop Seattle running back Marshawn Lynch, and that inability spoke to a larger problem—one that the team has had for some time now.

Apparently, the Packers have finally realized that serious steps need to be taken in that regard, and it looks like we're in for a complete overhaul of the inside linebackers in Titletown this year.

As ESPN's Rob Demovsky reported, on Wednesday the Packers released veteran linebacker A.J. Hawk, who has spent all nine of his NFL seasons in Green Bay.

Packers general manager Ted Thompson released a statement on the Packers' official website:

"

A.J. is a consummate Packer and we are grateful for all that he has given and how he represented the organization over the past nine seasons. He was a durable and consistent contributor to our success, but more importantly, he is a great person and teammate. The Packers are grateful for all that he has done on the field and in the community. We wish A.J., his wife Laura, and the rest of their family all the best.

"

Hawk also released a statement through the team, according to Kevin Patra of NFL.com: 

"

I spent nine great years in Green Bay. I had awesome teammates and coaches and a great medical staff and equipment staff. Many of them have become my closest friends. We won a ton of games, as well as a Super Bowl, and I loved everything about playing for one of the greatest franchises in all of sports. The fans in Green Bay are incredible. Between playing at Lambeau Field as well as seeing them on the road, they always supported us. I am looking forward to my next opportunity in the NFL, but I'll always cherish my years as a Green Bay Packer.

"

With the move, both Hawk and Brad Jones (the team's Week 1 starters at inside linebacker) have been let go in the past week or so, moves that save the Packers over $7 million in cap space.

And neither was even a little bit surprising.

Both Hawk and Jones were borderline awful in 2014, and the inside linebacker spot became such a liability for the Packers that the team moved Clay Matthews inside at times during the season.

It looks like Matthews will be spending more time inside next year, and third-year pro Sam Barrington showed some promise for Green Bay in 2014. However, Green Bay head coach Mike McCarthy admitted to Demovsky at the NFL Scouting Combine that inside linebacker was the team's "greatest need" in 2015.

And that was before Hawk was cut loose.

The problem is, this isn't the greatest of years to be in the market for one.

Rank	Player	2014 Team	Age
1.	Brandon Spikes	Buffalo Bills	27
2.	David Harris	New York Jets	31
3.	Mason Foster	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	25
4.	Rolando McClain	Dallas Cowboys	25
5.	Nate Irving	Denver Broncos	26
6.	Rey Maualuga	Cincinnati Bengals	28

Of the veteran inside linebackers about to hit free agency, only David Harris of the New York Jets has shown any real propensity to be a "three-down" player. Harris also has extensive experience playing in a 3-4 front.

However, Harris has also been the subject of rumors linking the 31-year-old to a handful of teams, according to ESPN.com's Vaughn McClure and NBC Sports' Mike Wilkening. With Ted Thompson being notoriously frugal in free agency, a bidding war is all but certainly going to put Harris beyond the Packers' price range.

Outside Harris, there are as many questions as answers. Brandon Spikes is phenomenal against the run but struggles in coverage. Rolando McClain played well for Dallas in 2014, but he battled injuries even in that good season. Mason Foster is a decent young linebacker, but the 25-year-old isn't a lot more than that.

Given Thompson's reputation in free agency, it's unlikely any big splashes will be made here. Maybe a depth addition, but not a player the Packers will be depending on for a huge contribution in 2015.

That leaves the 2015 NFL draft.

Heading into last week's combine, the top linebacker prospect on Mike Mayock's board at NFL.com was TCU's Paul Dawson, who piled up 136 tackles for the Horned Frogs a year ago.

Dawson's time in Indianapolis was an unmitigated disaster. The 6'0", 235-pounder finished near the bottom of his position group in nearly every drill, including a woeful 4.93-second 40-yard dash.

It got so bad that Dawson lashed out at the mounds of criticism regarding his performance:

It also dropped Dawson "back to the pack," so to speak. And it created a situation where there isn't a single slam-dunk, first-round prospect at inside linebacker this year. There's no Luke Kuechly. Not even a CJ Mosley.

Rank	Player	School	Proj. Round
1.	Eric Kendricks	UCLA	1-2
2.	Paul Dawson	TCU	2
3.	Denzel Perryman	Miami	2-3
4.	Benardrick McKinney	Miss. St.	3
5.	Stephone Anthony	Clemson	4

This isn't to say there's no talent. Eric Kendricks (the younger brother of Mychal Kendricks of the Philadelphia Eagles) demonstrated three-down athleticism at the combine. Ditto for Miami's Denzel Perryman.

As Mayock explained on the Rich Eisen Show (h/t College Football 24/7's Mike Huguenin), one scout told him: "Don't get off Paul Dawson. ... Trust your gut."

Tape. Doesn't. Lie.

Frankly, if Dawson's struggles in Indy cause him to fall to the Packers at No. 62, that could be a blessing in disguise for Green Bay. In any event, it appears a safe bet that the Packers will draft an inside linebacker before the draft's second day is over.

That rookie, Barrington, a lower-end free agent like Colin McCarthy or Darryl Sharpton (or Hawk's return, albeit at a much lower salary) and some time inside from Matthews isn't going to give Green Bay an elite cadre of inside 'backers.

No one will confuse it with the trio of maulers the 49ers have in San Francisco.

However, that unit would at least be an improvement over last year's patchwork group, and when you come as close to the Super Bowl as the Packers did in 2014, you never know which improvement will be the one that puts you over the top.

Gary Davenport is an NFL Analyst at Bleacher Report and a member of the Fantasy Sports Writers Association and the Pro Football Writers of America. You can follow Gary on Twitter @IDPManor.