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Rob Demovsky, ESPN Staff WriterNov 22, 2024, 06:00 AM ET
- Rob Demovsky is an NFL reporter at ESPN and covers the Green Bay Packers. He has covered the Packers since 1997 and joined ESPN in 2013. Demovsky is a two-time Wisconsin Sportswriter of the Year as selected by the NSSA. You can follow him on Twitter at @RobDemovsky.
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Rasheed Walker thought he had déjà vu after what he saw Brenton Cox Jr. do in Sunday’s game against the Chicago Bears.
Walker, the Green Bay Packers‘ starting left tackle, watched from the sideline as Cox, the second-year defensive end, raced into the backfield and tackled Bears running back D’Andre Swift for a 3-yard loss on Chicago’s first possession of the game.
But there was no way Walker would have done that before Sunday, because Cox had not played a single snap this season.
Nine games into the 2024, Cox had been inactive — a healthy scratch — for every single one of them. This after Cox dressed for just five games last season as a rookie, appearing in four of them for a total of 13 plays — nine special teams and four defensive snaps.
Then Walker remembered one of the team meetings last week, when coach Matt LaFleur put up a clip from practice.
“Literally, it was the exact same scenario,” Walker said this week. “Brenton doesn’t hesitate and attacks the mesh. It was literally like a spitting image of what he ended up doing on that play in the game. That’s practicing with a purpose.”
But Cox wasn’t done with just one tackle for loss against the Bears. He darted into the backfield again and sacked Caleb Williams. In 22 snaps, Cox finished with three tackles (including those two for a loss) and a pair of quarterback hits. Had the Packers not traded Preston Smith earlier in the month, Cox may never have gotten that opportunity.
It took Packers defensive end Brenton Cox Jr. a long time to get on the field, but he picked up this sack of Bears QB Caleb Williams in his NFL debut. AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh
“It’s been hard, man, just coming into work and doing the same thing every day with no result is …” said Cox, who couldn’t even find the words to finish the sentence. “You’ve got to be a really patient guy for that. I just love what I do. I love coming in and making plays, so that kept me motivated.”
It also boosted his spirits that what he had done in practice showed up in the team meeting.
“I think that stuff is powerful, I really do,” LaFleur said of showing practice clips. “It really paints a picture of practicing with a purpose.”
Cox also showed remarkable poise for someone itching to play. While blocking on a punt return in the second quarter, Bears linebacker Amen Ogbongbemiga head-butted Cox. Ogbongbemiga was flagged for unnecessary roughness and, because Cox did not retaliate, the Packers weren’t flagged for an ensuing penalty.
“He had the play on [special teams] where he drew a personal foul,” LaFleur said. “He kicked the guy’s butt in front of him, drove him back, the guy got frustrated, head-butted him and then he didn’t respond. He kept his poise, and that’s something that we talked about.
“Gotta give him a lot of credit because that’s not always easy to do in the heat of the battle, so I was really happy with his play and happy for him.”
It also showed just how much Cox had grown since his college days. He went undrafted in large part because he was kicked off the teams at both Georgia and Florida. In his last collegiate game, he threw a punch at the end of a play. Florida coach Billy Napier indicated that was just the final straw, telling reporters at the time that Cox’s dismissal was “a cumulative effect.”
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Still, Cox was allowed to participate in Florida’s pro day and the combine, where he impressed scouts with his skill and also with his explanation for what happened in college and how he would learn from it.
The Packers gave Cox a measly $3,000 signing bonus in May of 2023 to come in and try to win a roster spot. They got their money’s worth alone in Sunday’s win over the Bears.
“I remember when I got a phone list through this process and I called the young man,” Packers defensive line coach Jason Rebrovich said shortly after Cox signed. “And I said, ‘Hey man, I don’t want nothing to know about football. I want to know who I’m going to get on a daily basis. Am I going to get this knucklehead that’s gone through this stuff or am I going to get a guy that wants to become a pro and have the opportunity to become a star in this league?’
“Because he has a lot of talent, but he needs to be pushed, and a lot of guys need that, they need that kick in the rear end.”
Cox played almost as many snaps against the Bears as fellow defensive end Lukas Van Ness, the Packers’ first-round pick from the same rookie class. That speaks to what Cox did with his first real opportunity to play a significant role.
And it sounds like that might be only the beginning for him.
“I would expect to see more of him, and hopefully he’ll continue to grow as a player,” LaFleur said. “But I think it all starts with approach, how he attacks it, how he comes into the building. He’s had to earn everything he’s gotten up to this point, but I am excited about him, and I think there’s going to be more out there for him.”
