Trent Cole's weight and wait are over
The Philadelphia Daily News - Eagletarian
Trent Cole's weight and wait are over
Les Bowen, Daily News Staff Writer
Trent Cole had been sick with pneumonia for two months when he was drafted by the Eagles, in the fifth round, back in 2005, Cole recalled today. He reported for his first minicamp, the weekend after the draft, at 240 pounds.
A hundred and eight games and 68 sacks later, Cole sat behind the NovaCare podium and reflected on the "rough road" to his new four-year contract extension, which agent Rich Rosa said would pay Cole around $48 million, with a maximum of $53 million, depending on incentives, $15.5 million guaranteed. Rosa said Cole, third on the Eagles' all-time sack list behind Reggie White and Clyde Simmons, will be the NFL's third-highest-paid defensive end, at least until Mario Williams's expected signing with Buffalo is official.
Cole was the 146th player taken in the 2005 draft, and yet, he is the best defensive player the Eagles have drafted under Andy Reid. Today Cole said he didn't sense much interest from the Birds when he was coming out of Cincinnati; playing the Senior Bowl with pneumonia, then being so sick he couldn't work out at the NFL Scouting Combine probably didn't help. In fact, Cole feels it pushed him down at least a couple rounds. He recalled having been excused from combine interviews because he was so visibly ill as he tried to answer questions.
"It really hurt me. I went from 260, running a 4.5, to 235, 230. I was like, 'man, I'm not going to let this pneumonia overcome me,' and I got back after it," Cole said. "I came to the Eagles at 240 ... I came to (minicamp) here and I went all-out. I was hoping they was gonna keep me. There was great players in front of me, that I looked up to (like Hugh Douglas) when I was thinking about playing in the NFL. I came back (for training camp) at 270. Everything just skyrocketed from there."
Cole notched five sacks while starting only seven games as a rookie, eight in 14 starts the next year, then began a run that has featured double-digit sack numbers in five of the last six seasons, a span in which he has missed a total of three games.
The Eagles, who also traded Winston Justice to the Colts and signed Antonio Dixon to his restricted free agent tender today, are taking care of their own business and monitoring the annual free-agent bazaar. The lucrative extensions given Cole and his fellow 2005 draftee, Todd Herremans, might reflect a front office that feels it needs to show some love to loyal, reliable locker room soldiers.
"Business was conducted professionally. This got me to where I wanted to be," Cole, 29, said. He noted that he and Herremans didn't take their sense that they had outplayed their contracts (which each had two years remaining) to the media, or cause any problems.
He was asked whether it was hard to watch the Eagles spend so much last season on free agency and not have his deal reworked.
“They have to do what they have to do," he said. "They have to conduct business and run the team here. They had to do what they had to make the team successful. My time has come, and I knew my time was going to come. It’s just that I had to play my role and hopefully everything would work out.”
Desean could take a lesson from two professionals on how to conduct business. As he matures I think he'll be OK
Now it is time to "show Shady the money" and lock him up long term. McCoy is more important to the other side of the ball than Desean.— SlinkTMP- Great player. Good for him and for the Eagles!— kingsolomonsmind
- A+ professional.— Laughingaloud123
- Yo DJ!, ...Are you listening?— george0104
- Trent is good for the first 8 games, disappears after that. At 29, this is more like a two year contract tops— Sports4Life
- Agree with S4L.... Trent does have a tough time in the 2nd half of the season. don't know why that is. But at 29, you can't expect it to get any better. this is a huge contract, all things considered, and I'm surprised the Eagles did it. I would have been less surprised if they had taken one of the many solid D lineman available in the first round of the draft...— Mr. Magee
With Cole on the right and no one on the left, he gets double teamed by linemen/tight ends and chipped by the back. The second half of the season were brutal for Cole. Now that Babin made a splash last season on the right side, teams will be focused on him which will make things lighter for Cole on the other side. Double digit sacks by a guy who is constantly doubled, sometimes triple teamed is darn good. 29 now isn't the same as 29 a few NFL years ago. Cole is hitting his prime years the way these guys train and condition themselves. I'm looking forward to the season, if the Eagles get a decent middle linebacker, the core guys have a year playing the wide 9, should have a good feel for the wide 9, the defense is going to be really good.- herremans gets a new deal, cole gets a new deal, jackson gets a new deal... McCoy absolutely deserves his payday, too.— randomm82
- mathis and landri need to be resigned next. and preferably before they get any other offers that force us to match the price.— randomm82
- I wonder what kind of deal the #1 WR on the Eagles will get? Maclin is clearly the #1 WR and if Jackson got 5 year 50 mill contract, what will Maclin get? Quite a few guys will be restructuring their contracts next year. With the 15th pick in the 2012 NFL Draft the Philadelphia Eagles select Ryan Tannehill, Quarterback Texas A&M! One year under Vick then he's the man. Vick and his contract are gone to sign Maclin. Yeah I pulled out and dusted off the crystal ball. LOL
- tn Jackson is the number one wr maclin hasnt even been to a probowl yet and as for tannehill smh one year and he's the starter not in ur lifetime we have young players in their prime a 2nd year starter is for rebuilding teams— positive eagle
- so far so good.— djack10
