Getty Former Bears RB Tarik Cohen.
Former Chicago Bears All-Pro punt returner Tarik Cohen’s inspiring NFL comeback will delayed a bit longer due to a newly acquired injury.
Cohen, who was signed to the Carolina Panthers‘ practice squad in September, is dealing with a hamstring issue. The Panthers announced they placed Cohen on practice squad injured reserve on October 6. He will miss at least the next four weeks, hampering his return to the game even more.
After a series of debilitating injuries in recent years, Cohen worked out for the Panthers on September 12, and Carolina liked what it saw enough to bring him on. The running back/return specialist’s first serious injury came Week 3 of the 2020 season. He tore his ACL fielding a punt against the Atlanta Falcons. He hasn’t played in an NFL game since.
Tarik Cohen Is Happy to Be With Panthers
The #Panthers have placed RB Tarik Cohen on IR with a hamstring injury. He has been on the practice squad.
A fourth-round pick for Chicago in 2017, Cohen was born in Bunn, North Carolina and he played his college ball at North Carolina A&T. Thus, playing for the Panthers is a bit of a homecoming for the gadget player.
“I called it,” Cohen said on October 30, via Andscape. “I wanted to go to the Panthers. Even my agent told me people don’t really get to call their own shots and just go to whatever team they want. But I told him I was sure I would impress them [the Panthers]. I wanted to put all my eggs in one basket, and that’s what I did.”
Cohen is also reunited with former Bears special teams coach Chris Tabor in Carolina. The two worked together in Chicago from 2018 until 2021.
“I just want to get on the field and make an impact,” Cohen told Andscape. “Whether that be on special teams or offense. Or even if it’s just motivating the guys and giving them some knowledge I’ve gained over the years, I want to make my presence felt.”
Tarik Cohen Had Up & Down Tenure With the Bears
The Jets had no chance of catching Tarik Cohen
Over his four seasons with the Bears, Cohen was a versatile contributor on offense and special teams. He amassed 264 carries for 1,101 yards and established himself as a capable pass catcher, hauling in 209 catches for 1,575 yards. He scored 15 total touchdowns, including a punt return for a score.
His best year came in 2018, when he finished with 1,599 all-purpose yards and eight touchdowns. After the ACL injury Week 3 of the 2020 season, though, things were never the same.
Cohen, 28, spent his entire 2021 camping on Chicago’s Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list. In May of 2022, he suffered another devastating setback when he tore his Achilles tendon during a training session he was live-streaming on Instagram.
After all that, he still managed to find his way back to the league.
“I’m very confident; that’s the only reason I came back,” Cohen said about his return in September, via the Panthers’ official website. “I told everybody who wanted me to come back before that if I wasn’t myself – like, if I was a fraction of myself, I wouldn’t come back at all. And now I feel like I’m that – maybe even better. So with two years rest, I feel like a car that’s been in the garage, a brand-new Ferrari that hasn’t been driven in a long time.”
Hopefully, he’s not in the shop too long this time around.