{"id":59961,"date":"2001-06-16T16:23:01","date_gmt":"2001-06-16T20:23:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/?p=59961"},"modified":"2025-05-09T11:24:29","modified_gmt":"2025-05-09T15:24:29","slug":"pats-officially-sign-fifth-round-pick-akbar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patsfans.com\/patriots\/blog\/2001\/06\/16\/pats-officially-sign-fifth-round-pick-akbar\/","title":{"rendered":"Pats Officially Sign Fifth-Round Pick Akbar"},"content":{"rendered":"

The New England Patriots<\/strong><\/a> reportedly signed fifth-round draft choice Hakim Akbar to a two-year contract, making him the first of the Class of 2001 to ink a deal with the team.<\/p>\n

According to the Boston Globe the contract is reportedly worth close to $600,000 and includes a signing bonus of around $75,000.\u00a0 The 20-year old from the University of Washington did not attend the team’s three-day minicamp earlier this month because he was still attending classes.<\/p>\n

He is considered to be a hard hitting safety similar to teammate Lawyer Milloy, although many scouts felt he was a little too aggressive.\u00a0 Some of those same scouts however felt that a good coaching staff may be able to turn him into a Pro Bowl-caliber safety.<\/p>\n

Last season Akbar was an All-American first-team selection by The NFL Draft Report and CNN\/Sports Illustrated, adding honorable mention from College Football News.\u00a0 He was also an All-Pac 10 Conference first-team choice.<\/p>\n

Akbar lined up at strong safety for the first eight games last year before shifting to free safety when his teammate Curtis Williams suffered a career-ending spinal cord injury.\u00a0 He led the team with 97 tackles (54 solos), including five stops for losses of 16 yards.\u00a0 He also intercepted two passes for 31 yards in returns and deflected six others.\u00a0 He Also recovered a pair of fumbles.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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