Tarik Cohen

At 29 years old, Tarik Cohen has this physical status:

Tarik Cohen (born July 26, 1995) is an American football running back for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League. (NFL)

Before being picked in the fourth round of the 2017 NFL Draft, Cohen occupied the same position for North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University.

Early life

Cohen attended Bunn High School in Bunn, North Carolina, where he excelled at football and track & field for the Wildcats athletic teams. As a senior, he helped lead the Wildcats to a 9–3 record and a third-round finish in the 2011 NCHSAA 2A playoffs. He rushed for 808 yards, including 252 in a single game, in his two years on the varsity team. In Track, he was named team MVP and all-conference champions in football and state championships as a member of the North Carolina High School Athletic Association's Class 2A state champion 4100 meter relay team.

Personal life

Tyrell Cohen's twin brother Tyrell was discovered dead at a Duke Power substation in Raleigh, North Carolina, on May 9, 2021. In April 2022, his younger brother Dante died in a car crash.

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College career

Many colleges were concerned about recruiting him for football because of Cohen's size. As a result, North Carolina A&T was the only Division I school to give Cohen a football scholarship, which he accepted.

Cohen was positioned as a freshman in six of the Aggie's 11 games played this season, and after senior running backs Ricky Lewis and Dominique Drake graduated, he was positioned as one of a group of freshmen players poised to take over the Aggie program. Cohen was able to show his worth in the October 12 game against Hampton since Lewis was expected to be hurt, while Drake was sidelined with a concussion. Cohen carried the ball 22 times for 180 yards and a touchdown in that game. Against Florida A&M, Cohen continued his good play two weeks later with 32 attempts for 210 yards and three touchdowns. Cohen finished his freshman season as the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC)'s rookie of the year award winners. Cohen was the first A&T freshman to pass the 1,000 yard mark and only the third freshman in MEAC history to do so.

Cohen started his sophomore season with three consecutive 100+ rushing yard games, rushing for 161 yards against Coastal Carolina and a career-best 234 yards against Elon. In the October 9 game against Hampton, Cohen recorded 236 all-purpose yards (155 passing and 81 receiving), and concluded the season with 203 yards against arch rival North Carolina Central. Cohen had 1,340 yards and 15 touchdowns in the 2014 season, the second-highest single-season totals in A&T history. Cohen has since been named MEAC co-offensive player of the year, as well as All-American accolades from SBN, BoxtoRow, and Stats FCS.

A YouTube video of Cohen completing catches while simultaneously doing backflips on various social media platforms became extremely popular in the summer and culminated in his appearance on ESPN's SportsCenter, where he portrayed the catches on live television. At the 2015 Celebration Bowl, Cohen's 2015 season was highlighted by a string of record-breaking performances, including a career-best 295 yards and offensive MVP honors. Cohen's other notable performances from the season include: multiple single-season school records with 1,543 total rushing yards, 264 carries, and 15 touchdowns, equaling the record set the year before. For the second year in a row, Cohen was named MEAC Offensive Player of the Year, as well as all-American awards from College Sporting News, Sheridan Broadcasting Network, BoxtoRow, and Stats FCS. Cohen was also named SBN Offensive Player of the Year.

Cohen began his collegiate career by smashing a number of school records. Cohen's two touchdowns in the 2016 season opener against Division II St. Augustine put him over the record for receiving and rushing touchdowns. Cohen's 256-yard and three-touchdown performances in a match against Division I FBS Kent State on September 29, 2016, a record set by Stoney Polite's 41 career rushing touchdown record and James White's 25-year record for longest run from scrimmage at 89 yards. Cohen became the first player in school history to rush for at least 200 yards in three straight games against Bethune-Cookman on October 15, 2016. Cohen's A&T career would come to an end with him finishing as the MEAC's all-time leading rusher with 5,619 yards. Cohen's success made him the first player in school history to reach the 5,000-yard mark. Cohen was named conference offensive player of the year for three seasons in a row in MEAC history. His results will also make him the MEAC's top rusher and the first player in school history to reach the 5,000-yard record. Cohen also appeared on national television lists for national prizes such as the Deacon Jones Trophy, which he won, and the Walter Payton Award, where he finished fifth in the voting. Cohen has also been recognized by various national and international media outlets, including: the NCAA, STATS FCS, and BoxToRow. He was also selected for the 2016 Walter Camp Football Championship Subdivision All-American Team, and he was also named a second-team AFCA Football Championship Subdivision Coaches' All-American pick. Cohen added to his reputation by breaking the single-season touchdown record of 19 and tying the school record for single-season rushing touchdowns record with 18. He also holds other school records, including rushing touchdowns, total touchdowns, and total points at 56, 59, and 339 respectively. Cohen retired from college by playing in the 2017 NFL Collegiate Bowl.

Professional career

Cohen had been in talks with, and also worked out for, a variety of franchises going into the 2017 NFL Draft, including the Philadelphia Eagles, New York Jets, Chicago Bears, Denver Broncos, and Green Bay Packers, according to Sports News' Alex Marvez. Cohen's size and abilities drew numerous comparisons to Darren Sproles, and he was predicted to be a sixth round pick in the forthcoming draft. Cohen was one of 330 NFL candidates invited to participate in the 2017 NFL Scouting Combine. He was the youngest running back in attendance at 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m), where he ran the third fastest 40-yard (37 m) dash time among the running backs in 4.42 seconds.

In the fourth round, 119th overall of the 2017 NFL Draft, Cohen was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round, 119th overall. He was the tenth running back to be selected in the 2017 NFL Draft. In addition,, he was the first player from North Carolina A&T to be selected after offensive lineman Junius Coston was selected in the fifth round of the 2005 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. He was one of three non-FBS players drafted by the Bears in the draft, the first time since 2002 that the team had three non-FBS players in a joint draft.

Cohen and Jordan Howard shared the backfield with him in the 2017 season. In a 23–17 home loss to the Atlanta Falcons on September 10, 2017, Cohen finished the game with five carries for 66 yards and eight receptions for 47 yards and a touchdown in his NFL debut. He had 12 carries for 78 yards and four receptions for 24 yards against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3, a 23–17 overtime victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers. Cohen threw a 21-yard touchdown pass to tight end Zach Miller on October 15, the shortest player to throw a touchdown since Wee Willie Smith, who also stood at 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) when he threw a touchdown in 1934. During Week 8, Cohen scored his first rushing touchdown of his career against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. In Week 13, Cohen punt against the San Francisco 49ers for a 61-yard touchdown. He was the second rookie since Gale Sayers in 1965 to record a rushing, passing, receiving, and punt return touchdown. Cohen finished with 370 rushing yards, two running touchdowns, 358 receiving yards, one receiving touchdown, and one passing touchdown in his rookie season.

With Howard returning to Howard in the 2018 season, Cohen continued to divide the backfield. Cohen received seven receptions for a career-high 121 yards in Week 4 of the 2018 season, defeating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 48-10. Cohen passed for 21 yards against the Miami Dolphins on October 14, 2018. Cohen rushed five times for 40 yards against the New York Jets in Week 8, winning by a touchdown and a touchdown.

Cohen rushed for 30 yards against the New York Giants in Week 13 and had 12 catches for 156 yards. Cohen was involved in a trick play to tie the game down by seven points on the final play of regulation: quarterback Chase Daniel handed over to tight end Trey Burton, who later threw the ball to Cohen at the Giants' one-yard line. Cohen threw a pass to Anthony Miller for the touchdown, noting Daniel was covered. The Bears eventually lost 30–27 in overtime, but Cohen was the first player to score at least 30 passing yards, 150 receiving yards, and a passing touchdown in a game; his 156 receiving yards were the most by a Bears running back since at least 1960.

Cohen finished the season with 444 rushing yards and three touchdowns to go along with 71 tackles for 725 receiving yards and five touchdowns, as well as a league-leading 411 punt return yards. He was later named on the 2019 Pro Bowl roster and first-team All-Pro as a return specialist. Khalil Mack, Eddie Jackson, and Kyle Fuller, all of his teammates, were also named first-team All-Pro. In 2018, he received a total rating of 71.6, the 32nd highest grade among all qualifying running backs. The Bears won the NFC North and earned the #3 seed for the NFC Playoffs. Cohen's first appearance in the Wild Card Round against the Philadelphia Eagles was for 27 yards on his first appearance in the playoffs, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles by 16–15.

In Week 4 against the Minnesota Vikings, Cohen rushed five times for 11 yards and caught two passes for seven yards, his first receiving touchdown of the season. Cohen finished the 2019 season with 64 attempts for 213 passing yards and three touchdowns, as well as 79 receptions for 456 yards and three intercepting touchdowns.

Cohen signed a three-year, $17.25 million contract extension with the Bears on September 20, 2020. Cohen was tackled on a punt return and MCL tears, as well as a tibial plateau fracture in Week 3 against the Atlanta Falcons. Two days before the game, he was put on injured reserve.

Cohen was put on the reserve/physically inactive to perform to begin the season. He missed the entire 2021 season due to his ACL injury suffered during the previous season.

Cohen was released by the Bears on March 16, 2022.

During a training session that was being livestreamed from Cohen's Instagram account, he suffered a torn Achilles tendon.

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