Brenton Cox’s aim? ‘Be disruptive and fly to the ball’ for Packers defense (2024)

GREEN BAY — The old saying about training camp warns players not to count their reps, but make their reps count.

Brenton Cox is doing his best to do exactly that heading into the Green Bay Packers’ preseason opener at Cleveland on Saturday.

At a position with two first-round picks (Rashan Gary and Lukas Van Ness), the team’s defensive elder statesman (Preston Smith) and a consistent young pass rusher and special-teams contributor (Kingsley Enagbare), Cox has flashed in practice in recent days and figures to see plenty of playing time against the Browns.

“I think he’s done a really nice job, and it’ll be great to see him in a live game situation,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur said before Thursday’s final practice of the week. “He’ll get plenty of opportunities, plenty of reps. I think he’s grown as a football player and a person, and he’s been definitely more consistent and more reliable.”

The 6-foot-4, 250-pound Cox, a former five-star high-school recruit, went undrafted last year after being dismissed from two SEC programs — Georgia, after playing in 13 games for the Bulldogs in 2018 as a true freshman, and Florida, after throwing a punch in the Gators’ loss to the Bulldogs in October 2022.

The Packers looked past his checkered past and signed him after the draft, and, believing he’d be snapped up on the waiver wire, kept him on the roster at the final cutdown.

“I think he’s got a bright future,” general manager Brian Gutekunst said of Cox early in the offseason before the NFL Draft — right before ignoring the defensive end position with his 11 picks, an indicator that his praise of Cox was more than just happy talk.

“He’s shown through college and his time with us that he can rush the passer. He’s got a lot of physical traits that we are looking for. And he had a really good training camp (last summer) where he flashed a lot.

“Really, we stayed fairly healthy in that group most of the year, which really prevented some of those younger guys from getting on the field — because we had a few of them that we were very excited about. Sometimes that’s the way it goes.”

That was certainly the case with Cox, who saw action in just four games and played only 13 total snaps (four on defense, nine on special teams) as a rookie last year.

He was a healthy scratch for 12 regular-season and both postseason games, and he dressed for one regular-season game but didn’t play a single snap in that one.

Asked earlier this week what he learned from last season, Cox replied, “I learned to never take a play for granted, learn from the other guys and when your number’s called, you have to be ready.”

Perhaps that’s why, when approached by reporters in the locker room after a strong showing during Wednesday’s practice, Cox was in the middle of reviewing practice film on his iPad. While he wasn’t the only one doing so at the time, most players hold off on post-practice film review during their small window of free time.

His self-assessment? “I made a couple, I missed a couple. Just an OK practice for me. I think I can be a lot better.”

If he is, the Packers could have an interesting, versatile piece in new defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley’s aggressive pass-rushing approach. Cox lined up both at end and inside during practice, and although he’s still a work in progress, it’s clear that he’s a better fit in Hafley’s 4-3 based system than he was in the 3-4 that previous coordinator Joe Barry ran.

“This is a lot more natural system for me. Coming from college, this is what I played a lot of. Just coming off the edge and causing havoc,” Cox said. “I just knew (Hafley) wanted to cause disruption in the backfield, and I know that’s something I can do. Just getting back there, getting my hands up, getting pressure on the quarterback, causing TFLs. I knew this would be something I would like.”

Motivated by his minimal playing time as a rookie, Cox said he spent his offseason improving his conditioning and his special-teams techniques, understanding contributions to coordinator Rich Bisaccia’s units could lead to more opportunities on defense.

“We’ve got a lot of pass rushers already dialed in and ready to go,” Cox said. “When that opportunity comes, I’m going to be ready to play on special teams for Coach Rich.”

Cox also said he’s spent as much time as possible following Smith and Gary around the Packers’ facility at Lambeau Field, seeking their advice on anything and everything.

“They’ve been a big help to me. I talk to those guys every day about pass rush and growing into the man I am today,” Cox said. “I’m just learning from these guys as much as I can.”

And on Saturday, with Smith and Gary expected to only see brief action, Cox will have the chance to show off what he’s learned.

“Just to be disruptive and fly to the ball. That’s what my coach preaches so that’s all I’m going to do,” Cox said. “And showing that I can pass rush and be effective on defense. That’s what kept me around last year, but it wasn’t enough for me.”