Colin Cole

Colin Anthony Cole (born June 24, 1980) is a Canadian-American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) for the Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, and Carolina Panthers. He was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He played college football at the University of Iowa, where he earned first-team All-Big Ten honors as a senior in 2002. Cole signed with the Minnesota Vikings after going undrafted in the 2003 NFL draft.

After stints on the active rosters of both the Vikings and Detroit Lions without playing in any games, Cole signed with the Packers in 2004. He spent four seasons in Green Bay, and became a free agent after the 2008 season. In March 2009, Cole signed a five-year contract with the Seahawks despite not having started a game since 2006. He was the primary starter at defensive tackle for the Seahawks from 2009 to 2010. After two seasons away from the NFL, Cole signed with the Panthers in 2013 and was the team's primary starter during the 2013 and 2014 seasons. Cole was a member of the only two teams in NFL history to win playoff games despite having losing records: the 2010 Seahawks and the 2014 Panthers.

Early life Cole was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and raised in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

College career Cole played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes of the University of Iowa from 1999 to 2002. He was a four-year letterman and a three-year starter. He played in nine games overall in 1999 while also missing two contests due to injury. Cole started 11 of 12 games his sophomore year, and then was named honorable mention All-Big Ten his junior year in 2001. He switched from defensive end to defensive tackle for his senior season in 2002. Cole garnered first-team All-Big Ten recognition after recording 85 tackles (56 of which were solo) and nine sacks.

Minnesota Vikings Cole signed with the Minnesota Vikings on May 2, 2003, after going undrafted in the 2003 NFL draft. He was waived on September 9 after the first game of the regular season, although the Vikings signed him to their practice squad on September 25. He was promoted to the active roster on October 1 before being waived again on October 7, 2003. However, Cole did not end up playing in the game. He was waived by the Lions on September 5, 2004, and signed to the practice squad on September 7. He was then released on September 8, 2004.

Through the first 11 games of the 2007 season, Cole appeared in seven games and was inactive for four others. He sustained a concussion during practice on October 3, 2007. Overall in 2007, he recorded seven solo tackles, five assisted tackles, and one pass breakup, before being placed on injured reserve on November 26, 2007, due to suffering a fractured forearm in a game against the Lions. In 2008, the Packers extended a second-round ($1.417 million) tender to Cole, who was a restricted free agent. He signed the tender on April 17, 2008. He played in all 16 games (no starts) in 2008, totaling 19 solo tackles, 11 assisted tackles, 0.5 sacks, and four pass breakups.

Seattle Seahawks

Despite not having started a game since 2006 and only having posted 0.5 sacks in the prior two seasons, Cole signed a five-year contract worth $21.4 million, including $6 million in guaranteed money, with the Seattle Seahawks on March 1, 2009. He appeared in all 16 games, with a career-high 15 starts, for the Seahawks in 2009, accumulating 29 solo tackles, 19 assisted tackles, one fumble recovery, two pass breakups, and no sacks. He appeared in 11 games, all starts, during the 2010 season, recording 36 solo tackles, eight assisted tackles, one sack, and five pass breakups. The Seahawks went 7–9 in 2010 but finished first in the NFC West. Cole started two playoff games for the Seahawks, posting five solo tackles, one assisted tackle, and one pass breakup. He was released by the team on September 3, 2011. He was a backup for the first two games of the 2013 season but took over as starter after Dwan Edwards suffered an injury. Cole was later inactive for the final game of the season due to a strained calf. He played in 15 games, starting 13, overall in 2013, totaling nine solo tackles, six assisted tackles, and one sack. Cole posted two assisted tackles in a reserve role during the team's divisional round playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

On April 9, 2014, the Panthers re-signed Cole to a one-year deal worth $1.1 million. Cole played in two games, starting one, during the 2014 postseason and recorded one solo tackle and three assisted tackles. On March 3, 2015, he re-signed with the Panthers for one year and $1.0 million.

NFL career statistics Legend Bold Career high

Regular season

GP !! GS !! Cmb !! Solo !! Ast !! Sck !! TFL !! Int !! Yds !! TD !! Lng !! PD !! FF !! FR !! Yds !! TD 2004 !! GNB

2005 !! GNB

2006 !! GNB

2007 !! GNB

2008 !! GNB

2009 !! SEA

2010 !! SEA

2013 !! CAR

2014 !! CAR

2015 !! CAR

Career Cole has also served as an NFLPA player representative. On October 24, 2008, his football jersey number was retired by South Plantation High School.