Pat McAfee reveals AJ Hawk almost was drafted by New Orleans Saints

In 2006, AJ Hawk heard his name called as the No. 5 overall pick in the NFL Draft. He was heading to Green Bay to play for the Packers, with whom he spent the first eight years of his career out of Ohio State.

But that wasn’t always the plan, according to Pat McAfee.

Hawk is one of the co-hosts of The Pat McAfee Show, and it was revealed Thursday he expected to go No. 2 overall to the New Orleans Saints. The plan, apparently, was for the Houston Texans to take Reggie Bush with the top pick. Instead, Houston general manager Charley Casserly went a much different direction and took Mario Williams out of NC State, opening the door for Bush to go No. 2.

The rest, as they say, is history.

“The Houston Texans were supposed to take Reggie Bush and then, the No. 2 overall pick was going to be the Saints,” McAfee said. “They were going to take AJ Hawk. Instead … Charley Casserly goes with Mario Williams because Peyton Manning is in the division. He said, ‘I’m trying to stop Peyton Manning. I’m not trying to outscore Peyton Manning.’ He drafts Mario Williams out of nowhere, Reggie Bush then becomes a Saint and then, AJ Hawk falls all the way to five. Supposed to go No. 2, ends up at five.”

Hawk joked about what could’ve happened if he ended up in New Orleans instead of Green Bay.

“I would’ve had some stock in AdvoCare and [Smoothie King]. … What could’ve been,” Hawk said.

It all worked out for Hawk, who won a Super Bowl in his first season with the Packers. He earned All-Rookie Team honors by the PFWA and totaled nearly 950 tackles during his career with the Packers, Cincinnati Bengals and Atlanta Falcons. After retiring in 2017, he jumped into the podcasting world and has been a staple on McAfee’s show over the years.