Tayler Hawkins
| DC Defenders | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position: | Safety | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | December 27, 1997 Palm Springs, California, U.S. | ||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 205 lb (93 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | Palm Springs (CA) | ||||||
| College: | San Diego State (2016–2021) | ||||||
| Undrafted: | 2022 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| |||||||
| Roster status: | Active | ||||||
| Career NFL statistics as of 2023 | |||||||
| |||||||
Tayler Colby Hawkins (born December 27, 1997) is an American professional football safety for the DC Defenders of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football for the San Diego State Aztecs. He also played for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL).
Early years
[edit]Hawkins was born on December 27, 1997, in Palm Springs, California.[1] His mother died when he was 18 months old and he and his twin brother lived with their grandmother growing up.[2] He and his twin, Tyler, both became top football players at Palm Springs High School, with Tayler being a three-time first-team all-league choice while playing wide receiver, defensive back and punter.[2][3]
Also a two-time first-team All-CIF selection, Hawkins had 94 receptions for 1,915 yards and 25 touchdowns in his last two years along with 133 tackles, 14 pass deflections and nine interceptions in three years.[3] He helped his team win 24-of-27 games in his last two seasons while they won the CIF championship in 2015.[3] He committed to play college football for the San Diego State Aztecs along with Palm Springs teammate Trenton Thompson, while his brother committed to the Sacramento State Hornets.[4]
College career
[edit]Hawkins redshirted as a true freshman at San Diego State in 2016.[5] He appeared in 10 games during the 2017 season and recorded five tackles.[3] He had 13 games played, five as a starter, in the 2018 season, totaling 35 tackles and five pass breakups.[3] He then started five of 13 games in 2019 and had 30 tackles and three tackles-for-loss.[3] He was named honorable mention All-Mountain West Conference (MWC) as a senior in 2020.[6] He opted to return for a final season in 2021, after having been granted extra eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[7] Hawkins was named second-team all-conference in 2021 and had 62 tackles, 13 pass breakups and two interceptions while being ranked the second-best coverage defensive back nationally by Pro Football Focus (PFF); he was also chosen to PFF's Mountain West Team of the Year.[8]
Professional career
[edit]| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
203 lb (92 kg) |
30+1⁄2 in (0.77 m) |
9+3⁄8 in (0.24 m) |
4.53 s | 1.56 s | 2.63 s | 4.34 s | 7.21 s | 36.5 in (0.93 m) |
9 ft 8 in (2.95 m) |
14 reps | |
| All values from Pro Day[9] | ||||||||||||
San Francisco 49ers
[edit]After going unselected in the 2022 NFL draft, Hawkins was signed by the San Francisco 49ers as an undrafted free agent.[10] He was released at the final roster cuts and subsequently re-signed to the practice squad.[11] He signed a reserve/future contract after the season on January 31, 2023.[12] He was placed on injured reserve on August 29, 2023, which was to end his season.[13] On September 6, he was waived from injured reserve.[14] He was re-signed to the practice squad on October 24.[15] He was elevated to the active roster for the team's season finale against the Los Angeles Rams, making his NFL debut in the game while recording an interception.[16][17] He signed a reserve/future contract on February 13, 2024.[18]
Hawkins was waived by the 49ers with an injury settlement on August 22, 2024.[19]
DC Defenders
[edit]On December 4, 2024, Hawkins signed with the DC Defenders of the United Football League (UFL).[20]
References
[edit]- ^ "Tayler Hawkins Stats". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
- ^ a b John, Andrew L. (August 24, 2014). "Twin Ambition". The Desert Sun. p. A, A6, A7 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f "Tayler Hawkins". San Diego State Aztecs.
- ^ Brown, Nathan (February 3, 2016). "Palm Springs football trio set to take game to college". The Desert Sun.
- ^ Mendoza, Erwin (April 22, 2022). "2022 NFL Draft Profile: San Diego State CB Tayler Hawkins". Mountain West Wire.
- ^ "Fifteen Aztecs earn 2020 All-Mountain West football honors". The East County Californian. December 31, 2020.
- ^ John, Andrew L. (February 5, 2022). "A trio of Coachella Valley men are training for their shot at NFL glory". The Desert Sun.
- ^ McDonald, Briana (July 18, 2022). "2022 Training Camp Preview: Defensive Backs, Safeties". San Francisco 49ers.
- ^ "2022 NFL Draft Scout Tayler Hawkins College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved January 31, 2024.
- ^ John, Andrew L. (April 30, 2022). "Tayler Hawkins, Trenton Thompson and Daniel Whelan land NFL free-agent deals following draft". The Desert Sun.
- ^ John, Andrew L. (August 30, 2022). "Palm Springs grads Tayler Hawkins, Trenton Thompson added to NFL practice squads". The Desert Sun.
- ^ Madson, Kyle (February 1, 2023). "49ers add 10 players to reserve/future contracts". USA Today.
- ^ Madson, Kyle (August 29, 2023). "49ers injuries: 4 placed on season-ending IR at final cuts". USA Today.
- ^ Hutchinson, Jake (September 7, 2023). "49ers waive DB, reinstate Nick Bosa, create $23 million in cap space with contract restructures". KNBR-FM.
- ^ "Tayler Hawkins: Headed to Bay Area". CBS Sports. RotoWire. October 24, 2023.
- ^ "49ers Make Series of Roster Moves Ahead of #LARvsSF; Downgrade WRs to Out". San Francisco 49ers. January 6, 2024.
- ^ Call III, Tommy (January 7, 2024). "Watch: 49ers S Tayler Hawkins snags INT in NFL debut vs. Rams". USA Today.
- ^ "San Francisco 49ers Sign Nine Free Agents". 49ers.com. February 13, 2024. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
- ^ David Smith, Michael. "49ers bring back Logan Thomas, waive Taylor Hawkins". NBC Sports. Retrieved August 23, 2024.
- ^ "UFL Transactions". UFLBoard.com. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
