Fletcher Cox Makes His Personal Goals Public

Unlike a lot of athletes, Fletcher Cox was not afraid to throw his personal goals for the season right out there.

“My goal is to be Defensive Rookie of the Year,” said Cox. “It’s probably every rookie’s goal, but that’s one of the goals I want to set for myself.”

Does he have a sack total in mind?

“Five, six sacks as a rookie, that would be great,” he said.

The 12th overall pick out of Mississippi State will try to chase down those ambitions beginning Sunday in Cleveland.

It is not always easy to judge a defensive tackle’s play, particularly in limited action during the preseason. Cox had three tackles in as many games and was able to generate some pressure, but overall did not stand out. He will be prominently featured in a DT rotation that includes Derek Landri, Cullen Jenkins and Cedric Thornton starting this week.

“From the first game to the second game I made a big jump,” said Cox. “That first game, probably a little nervous, scared to mess up, scared to make a mistake. And the second game I just went out and played.”

Andy Reid noted that, while the 64-, 298-pounder has not been perfect, he has been efficient at correcting his mistakes. Like all the rookies who will be seeing action early (and there are quite a few of them), Reid anticipates some bumps early on.

“I can’t just come in and have things happen like right then,” said Cox. “You have to grow, grow into the system. I talked to Coach Reid about it, he says I’ve gotten better every day, so there’s no pressure on me and I feel like I’ll do great.”

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