FW* Telegram Cobbs ready to prove himself again

[OldTimer]

Posted on Thu, Apr. 20, 2006 Ready to prove himself againBy JEFF WILSON

Star-Telegram Staff Writer

Patrick Cobbs was a do-everything running back for North Texas, and whether he's drafted or not, he hopes to prove that he can play a similar role for some team in the NFL.Being told "he can't" is nothing new for Patrick Cobbs, who has become an expert at proving people wrong.

Cobbs was told he couldn't play Division I-A football ... three years before he won the 2003 national rushing title at the University of North Texas.

Some weren't sure Cobbs could return to form after a 2004 knee injury, only to be refuted by 1,154 yards in his senior season.

Cobbs' latest project is showing doubters that his size (5-foot-8, 206 pounds) and 40-yard speed (4.71 seconds) won't prevent him from playing in the NFL.

Ideally, Cobbs will be selected in the NFL Draft on April 29-30, although his signing as a free-agent rookie appears more likely. Either way, Cobbs plans to show everyone "he will" make it in professional football.

"I guess there's always an excuse why I did it and not why I'm good enough," he said. "All I want is a shot. I don't think they're going to be able to send me home once I get going."

Many draft prospects have more speed than Cobbs, but few have the work ethic. He's motivated by the negativity, but some of his hard work comes from a love for football.

He said he even "loves" to play special teams, and at UNT, he did everything from returning punts and kickoffs to blocking a punt for a touchdown.

Scouts also know that it takes a combination of talents to lead the nation in rushing.

"He's not a burner, but he's quick and he makes yards," said C.O. Brocato, the Tennessee Titans' national college scouting director. "He plays a little faster than he times. Somebody in the seventh round is going to be looking for a little running back that's tough, that can come out of the backfield and catch the ball. He'd be great."

Cobbs said several teams, as many as nine, have been in contact with him and Dallas-based agent Lance Riddle. But Cobbs has received mixed signals.

Take his recent performance for scouts at UTArlington. His time in the 40 improved, depending on the stopwatch, by as much as two-tenths of a second, but he initially received a cold shoulder from the pack of scouts on the sidelines.

In one-on-one conversations, though, the scouts treated him like the next American Idol.

"I think they're trying to keep me under the radar," Cobbs said. "A lot of the scouts tell me that I'm going to be in the NFL for a long time. I just want to know where I need to go to get the opportunity to play."

There are few doubts in Denton that Cobbs will make an NFL roster in the fall. UNT coaches know that Cobbs will do anything, from making a catch on third down to pass blocking to playing special teams.

"If he's not drafted, there are teams that are saying, 'Please call us first,'" Mean Green coach Darrell Dickey said. "All I'm hoping is he gets in camp with a team that is going to give the time to check out his abilities. If they do that, I'm quite sure they're going to be impressed."

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Jeff Wilson, (817) 390-7953 jwilson@star-telegram.com

Edited April 20, 2006 by OldTimer

[meangreen11]

When is the draft? I will be watching it this year pulling for Patrick to get selected.

[NorthTexasFan]

Hey GMG, be sure to keep the board posted as to if Cobbs gets selected on April 29th or 30th, ok? Thanks!

[MeanGreenBuzz]

As much as I hate to say it I have a feeling he is going to be another Brad Kassell. I would love to see him get drafted and start right away, but I think he is going to be undrafted and spend a few years behind someone before he really takes off, but there is no doubt in my mind he will be playing on Sundays.

[meangreendork]

If he doesn't get drafted, look for Cobbs to be somewhere back in the depth chart, only to have a breakout game ala Evan Cardwell. I'm certain the Desperados have no regrets about signing "Revvin" Evan.

[SCREAMING EAGLE-66]

Priest Holmes wasn't drafted..............but Brian Leaf was early in the first round....... meanwhile Tom Brady was taken as the 33 rd pick in Round six.

They don't always get things right.

Edited April 21, 2006 by SCREAMING EAGLE-66

[MrStrange62]

If he doesn't get drafted, look for Cobbs to be somewhere back in the depth chart, only to have a breakout game ala Evan Cardwell. I'm certain the Desperados have no regrets about signing "Revvin" Evan.

←

no offense to cardwell... but cobbs is at a very different level than cardwell. to suggest that cobbs is only an arena ball calibur player is an insult to him. cobbs will get to the NFL, draft or otherwise and he WILL succeed.

GMG!!!

[Bryan316]

no offense to cardwell... but cobbs is at a very different level than cardwell.  to suggest that cobbs is only an arena ball calibur player is an insult to him.  cobbs will get to the NFL, draft or otherwise and he WILL succeed.

GMG!!!

←

I'm pretty sure that's not what he said. He meant being 2nd or 3rd on the RB depth chart for an NFL team, and through injuries or chance of fate, Cobbs gets the start and surprises everyone. The Packers had this happen twice in the past few seasons. You could also argue about Larry Johnson last year after Priest Holmes went down.

[meangreendork]

no offense to cardwell... but cobbs is at a very different level than cardwell.  to suggest that cobbs is only an arena ball calibur player is an insult to him.  cobbs will get to the NFL, draft or otherwise and he WILL succeed.

GMG!!!

←

Read too much into that, did ya?

Same basic concept- PC goes to the depth chart at #2-#4. Then, thanks to injury and work ethic, he gets to show that he's more than capable of handling the #1 spot. If I wanted to compare skill levels, I would have.

Besides, I wanted to run the Brad Kassell parallel, but someone already beat me to it.

Edited April 22, 2006 by meangreendork

[89sFolks]

Patrick's Loss of the "burst" pre ACL will be his draw back. In the league it's all about speed.