Tis the season when guys make all kinds of proclamations.
We guess that would make it proclamation season.
Most guys will tell you that, yeah, they want to start or this is their year. And we believe them to varying degrees.
Because why wouldn’t you want to start? And why wouldn’t you think this is your year?
What else are you going to say?
Well, cornerback Casey Hayward has taken that a step further.
Even though the Green Bay Packers chose cornerbacks in the first and second round of the 2015 draft and Micah Hyde has proven to be a far more reliable option, Hayward is still considered the frontrunner to replace Tramon Williams in the starting lineup.
On the plus side, Hayward has shown a knack for making plays when he’s healthy. On the negative side, Hayward is hurt a lot and — our biggest issue — he tackles for shit.
And then there’s the positional question. Hayward has played only slot corner in the pros, so can he successfully transition to the outside?
Hayward says he can. He played outside in college and the coaching staff seems to think he’ll be just fine.
But Hayward isn’t stopping at the old, “yeah, I want to start and I plan on starting” routine. He’s going a step further.
He wants to be the Packers No. 1 cornerback. The shutdown guy.
“I know what type of player I am, (the coaches) know what type of player I am. When I’m on the field, I make talented plays. So whenever I’m healthy and on the field, I’m going to be full go, and I’m going to be ready to compete. And not just be the starting corner, but be the No. 1 corner,” Hayward said.
“That’s my whole goal, not just being a starting corner. I want to be one of those elite guys and be able to guard the No. 1s.”
That, we imagine, is news to Sam Shields, who is now the Packers default No. 1 cornerback.
But that’s the thing with the Packers cornerbacks. Unlike other positional groups on the team, the cornerbacks are in a constant state of competition. No one gets handed a job.
Listen to cornerbacks coach Joe Whitt. He’s always saying jobs are wide open and he always backs it up.
Just last season, Hayward became an afterthought for a number of games because Hyde was playing better. And that was during the season.
Only toward the end of the year did Hayward start getting on the field on a regular basis again.
So maybe Sam Shields should watch his ass.