Hawthorne looking to find a home on Oakland’s front

By Anthony Carroll  |   Monday, June 05, 2006  |  Comments( 8 )

Oakland Raiders
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Oakland Raiders (slash Frankfurt Galaxy) defensive tackle, Anttaj Hawthorne, won an NFL (Europe) title (in Germany).

The must count for something.

(Anttaj Hawthorne thinks so.)

Hawthorne, a former sixth-round pick out of Wisconsin, recorded a sack on the third play from scrimmage in a 22-7 thrashing of the Amsterdam Admirals. Drafted in 2005, Hawthorne entered his first year of NFL Europe action this season, providing a forceful rush to the middle face of the Galaxy defense. The 310-pounder finished his championship-winning season with 28 regular season tackles and two sacks, bolstering a first-ranked rushing defense that allowed just 52 yards per game.

In all, Oakland led the NFL in World Bowl participants with six. Along with Hawthorne, the Galaxy roster included kicker Dave Kimball and tackle Roderick Green; sporting Amsterdam apparel were punter Glenn Pakulak, quarterback Reggie Robertson, and linebacker Shawn Morgan.

Now returned from overseas action, the 2005 draft pick feels outfitted to contribute to the 2006 season. Luckily for him, preceding offseason months have brought forth two massive tackle departures on the Oakland roster--Ted Washington and Ed Jasper--leaving a hole to be filled. Currently set to fill in that hole are 11-year veteran, Warren Sapp, tackle/end hybrid, Tommy Kelly, and 335-pound Terdell Sands. Sans 33-year-old Warren Sapp, experience in the mid-front of the Oakland Raiders' defense is hard to come by, leaving the subsequent DT spots up for grabs.

At 6-2, 310 pounds, Hawthorne is looking to sit somewhere in that rotation. In 2005, Hawthorne was considered amongst the top defensive tackle prospects in the draft. In fact, some scouts listed the Wisconsin-grad to go as high as the first round. He finished his collegiate 42-game stint with 201 tackles, 12 sacks, 42 tackles for a loss, two forced fumbles, and four pass deflections. However, in April of 2005, Hawthorne negated his impressive numbers with a positive drug test. Along with teammate, Jonathon Clinkscale, Hawthorne tested positive for marijuana, adding an exclamation point to a long list of off-field question marks already surrounding him.

Just over a year later, the 24-year-old is seeking to make name for himself in the NFL after quietly disrupting Europe's professional quarterbacks for a season.

Barring a June free agency rush, Hawthorne will slide into the training camp DT rotation easily--then, possibly, the preseason rotation.

After that, he can look to "light it up" in the regular season.

Yes, only quarterbacks will be smoked this time.

Anthony Carroll can be contacted at acarroll@realfootball365.com

Get more on Anttaj Hawthorne at Realfootball365.com
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About Anthony Carroll

Anthony Carroll began writing for RealFootball365.com on Sept. 26, 2005, making him one of the longest tenured contributors to the “365” team. As a senior writer, Anthony has taken on the task of delivering original content to the silver and black faithful year round, despite having to deal...
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CommentsComments: 8  |  Sign Up  View all comments
No.1
JLittle		01:06 PM
06/05/2006
Another good read Ant-Dog; keep the excellent reports coming! This story should help to quiet the critics that we're paying...
No.2
DEVASTATOR		01:14 PM
06/05/2006
Indded, Antajj Hawthorne will definitely make an impact and was a steal as a 6th Round pick last season. Wisconsin's defensive...
No.3
David Densmore		01:17 PM
06/05/2006
Even if Hawthorne blossoms at DT this year, the Raiders today are painfully thin at the position. Looking at tapes from 2005,...
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