Evan Weaver, Jaylinn Hawkins Sign Rookie Contracts - Not Ashtyn Davis

Most drafted players throughout the NFL struck deals with their teams and reported to camp this week

Two of the three former Cal players selected during the 2020 NFL draft agreed to contract terms this week with full training camp scheduled to begin next week. Atlanta Falcons’ fourth-round pick safety Jaylinn Hawkins and Arizona Cardinals sixth-round selection linebacker Evan Weaver both signed with their teams, but safety Ashtyn Davis, a third-round pick of the New York Jets, remains unsigned.

Rookies reported to camp this week.

Davis was the only one of the Jets’ nine draft picks who has yet to sign, according to SI’s JetsCountry, which is interesting because Davis figures in the Jets’ plans for 2020.

An article on the Jets’ website carries the headline “Jets Safety Reset: Big Three in the Deep Middle.”

The three are starters Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye as well as rookie Davis. Adams had asked for a trade earlier this spring, which would have changed Davis’ status considerably, but news of a possible trade has died down.

And a video, with Jets reporter Eric Allen doing the analysis, indicates that Davis will play a major role on the defense in his first season. Davis could even play some nickel back. Click here for that video.

There is not much wiggle room for negotiating because salary parameters are pretty much set for each draft position. So you wonder why Davis has not agreed to a rookie contract, which is virtually always a four-year deal with a team option for a fifth.

Davis was the fourth pick in the third round, a spot that would earn hm about $900,000 (including signing bonus) his first season, $1.1 million in his second, $1.3 million in his third and $1.5 million in his fourth, according to numbers provided by Spotrac. 

Davis was unable to run for scouts during the NFL combine because he was recovering from groin surgery, and his plan to run for scouts during Cal Day in March was scuttled by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Weaver is in a different situation, because he will have to work to earn a roster spot with the Cardinals. 

We have agreed to terms with all six of our picks from the 2020 NFL Draft.

— Arizona Cardinals (@AZCardinals) July 22, 2020

The report on the Cardinals website regarding the signing of all their drafted players had this to say about Weaver:

"Weaver has a tougher climb to make the roster with [Jordan] Hicks, [De'Vondre] Campbell and [Isaiah] Simmons at inside linebacker, and special teamers Dennis Gardeck and Zeke Turner also playing well the last two seasons."

However, a report on the Cardinals website about their linebackers offered some hope, saying the following:

"Weaver is a sixth-round pick who could be another Gardeck on special teams and has the football mentality coaches love."

That’s not exactly effusive praise, but the team seems to know what it has in Weaver, who could be a monster on special teams if that’s what it takes to make the regular-season roster.

Surprisingly the odds of a sixth-round draft pick making the 53-man roster as a rookie are pretty good, with only a few sixth-rounders failing to make an NFL roster in 2019. I address that in this video.

If Weaver does catch on, reporters in the Phoenix area will love him because Weaver always provides quotable material. In fact, his personality might be enough to keep him on the team if it comes down to Weaver and one or two other players for the final roster spot.

If Weaver makes the team he will earn about $650,000 his first year (including signing bonus), $800,000 in his second year, $900,000 in his third and little over $1 million in his final year, according to Spotrac.

That would be a lot of money for you or me, but not much for an NFL player.

Hawkins’ status with the Falcons is somewhere between Davis’ situation in New York and Weaver’s in Arizona.

Rookies = official 🖊 pic.twitter.com/IbeKM5fSTe

— Atlanta Falcons (@AtlantaFalcons) July 21, 2020

Signed. ✍️

Congrats @jhawko6! #ProBears

📷 @AtlantaFalcons pic.twitter.com/d30InVT8Jh

— Cal Football (@CalFootball) July 21, 2020

It's hard to forget Hawkins’ emotional response the day he was drafted, because he was not expected to be drafted at all.

Hawkins’ contract as a fourth-rounder is estimated to pay him about $775,000 (including signing bonus) his rookie season, more than $900,000 in his second year, $1 million his third and nearly $1.2 million in his fourth, Spotrac reports.

The Falcons said this about Hawkins on their website:

"A former wide receiver-turned-cornerback-turned safety, Hawkins has a very high football IQ. He's not an elite athlete, but he often puts himself in position to make plays by understanding what offenses are trying to do against the defense – a quality that has helped Ricardo Allen succeed in the NFL. And Hawkins made a lot of plays at Cal."

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Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53

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