AJ Hawk

Why is AJ Hawk not in studio on the Pat McAfee Show? Why is he always on Zoom, and why is he not on the first hour?

The Pat McAfee Show’s own notes have placed AJ Hawk in Ohio while the rest of the crew was in the Indianapolis studio, and have described him joining in the second hour; as of November 2026 neither he nor the show has explained the arrangement in anything we could source. What is public: the podcast notes said on July 11, 2023 that the crew was “back in Indy/Ohio,” and on April 7, 2025 that Darius Butler, AJ Hawk and the boys were “back in Indianapolis and Ohio, respectively.” The show marks his studio days as an event, with titles such as “AJ Hawk LIVE in the ThunderDome” on March 18, 2026, and notes from June 3, 2022 that the crew was joined “IN STUDIO” by him. On timing, the notes from June 24, 2021 say he joined “early today because there is so much to talk about,” the March 25, 2024 notes have him returning “starting off the second hour,” and Awful Announcing noted he appeared in the second hour on November 13, 2023. The notes do not name the video tool he uses. He is there in person for many road shows, including the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in February 2026 and U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis on November 9, 2026.

What happened to AJ Hawk on the Pat McAfee Show? Is AJ Hawk leaving, and what is he doing now?

AJ Hawk has not left The Pat McAfee Show: as of November 2026 he is still a co-host, and we found no report in ESPN, Awful Announcing, Front Office Sports or another accepted outlet that he is leaving. The show’s podcast notes name him on every episode from November 2 to November 9, 2026, and the Pro Football Hall of Fame named him as a co-host for the show’s August 6, 2026 broadcast from Canton. Days he is missing usually have a plain explanation in the notes: on March 25, 2024 he returned after a week in Jamaica, and on August 11, 2025 the crew was “back from vacation.” Two moments drew press. On November 13, 2023 he appeared with a badly injured eye, and Awful Announcing reported that a doctor found about a third of his cornea gone after an accident over the weekend; he told the show, “I was hoping you guys might not notice.” In January 2024, during the week of controversy over Aaron Rodgers’ remarks about Jimmy Kimmel, Awful Announcing reported that users on X were asking what Hawk does on the show and why he does not step in when McAfee or guests cross a line; it printed no response from him.

Why is AJ Hawk a Ryder Cup winner?

AJ Hawk is called a Ryder Cup champion as a running joke on The Pat McAfee Show: he played for Team USA in the celebrity match at the 2021 Ryder Cup in Wisconsin, and the U.S. pros won the Ryder Cup that weekend. The show’s podcast notes for September 23, 2021 say he was “still at the Ryder Cup to represent Team USA in the celebrity portion,” and on September 27, 2021 they introduced him as the “newly minted Ryder Cup Champion” while he and McAfee broke down “the US dominating the Ryder Cup.” The celebrity match itself went the other way: WISN, the Milwaukee TV station, reported on September 23, 2021 that the European team won it, and quoted Hawk, a former Packer: “Just being here is awesome.”

Why is AJ Hawk on the Pat McAfee Show?

AJ Hawk is on The Pat McAfee Show because he has been Pat McAfee’s on-air partner since before the show joined ESPN. The show’s podcast notes for November 22, 2018 call him “Pat’s former podcast cohost” and the man who would be in the booth with McAfee that Saturday for a college football game, and by March 19, 2020 the notes describe “another installment of McAfee & Hawk Sports Talk.” When McAfee took the show to ESPN, ProFootballTalk reported on May 16, 2023 that it would air on ESPN and ESPN+ that fall, stay free on YouTube, and that Hawk would continue as co-host. He also guest-hosts: the notes have him leading the show while McAfee was on paternity leave in May 2023 and while McAfee was away on assignment in August 2025.

Why did AJ Hawk retire from football? What were his stats?

AJ Hawk retired after 11 NFL seasons, and he has not given a single reason in anything we could source. ProFootballTalk reported on January 5, 2017, citing Albert Breer of The MMQB, that he was retiring, after a year with the Cincinnati Bengals and a brief stint with the Atlanta Falcons, who released him in October 2016. On April 18, 2017 the AP, via CBS Detroit, reported that he would retire as a Packer and that he ranked first in franchise history with 1,118 career tackles, having played 142 of a possible 144 regular-season games in Green Bay. At Ohio State he won the Lombardi Award and was part of the 2002 national championship team as a freshman.

How old is AJ Hawk? Where is he from?

AJ Hawk is 42 as of November 2026, born January 6, 1984 in Kettering, Ohio, per Famous Birthdays and his ESPN player page. The Lombardi Award gives his hometown as Centerville, Ohio. The show celebrated “Hawker’s birthday” on its January 6, 2026 episode, per its podcast notes.

What is AJ Hawk’s real name? What is his full name?

AJ Hawk works under the name A.J. Hawk, also written AJ Hawk, which is how ESPN, the Pro Football Hall of Fame and The Pat McAfee Show list him. We did not find a longer legal name in a source we accept, so we do not print one. On the show he is also called Hawker.

Who is AJ Hawk married to? Who is AJ Hawk’s wife?

AJ Hawk is married to the sister of former Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn, per Famous Birthdays. Awful Announcing recalled in September 2023 that she wore a jersey split down the middle, half Hawk and half Quinn, at the January 2006 Fiesta Bowl, when she was dating Hawk and Ohio State beat her brother’s Notre Dame 34-20; McAfee wore the same kind of jersey on his show in South Bend on September 22, 2023. His older brother, Ryan Hawk, hosts The Learning Leader Show, whose 500th episode featured AJ, their father Keith and Pat McAfee.

Where can I watch AJ Hawk?

AJ Hawk appears on The Pat McAfee Show, live on weekdays on ESPN and ESPN+, with segments and full shows on the show’s YouTube channel, which has about 3 million subscribers as of November 2026, and in its podcast feed. His own YouTube channel, The HawkCast, has about 5,700 subscribers and 137 videos of long interviews; its last upload was a Brian Urlacher episode on August 15, 2018.

What is AJ Hawk’s net worth? How much is AJ Hawk worth?

AJ Hawk does not publish a number and neither do we.

How many kids does AJ Hawk have? What about his children?

Not something we cover.

Who represents AJ Hawk? Who is AJ Hawk’s agent?

As of November 2026, no agent or manager is named publicly for AJ Hawk in anything we could source; his on-air work runs through The Pat McAfee Show, which airs on ESPN. Ames Create does not represent him; we cover him because people keep asking why he is not in the studio and whether he is leaving the show, and the show’s own notes answer most of it. If that changes, this entry will say so.

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