Connor Cook

Connor Cook (born January 29, 1993) is an American football quarterback who is a free agent. He played college football for the Michigan State Spartans and was their starting quarterback from 2013 to 2015. He holds the record for most career wins at Michigan State. Cook was selected in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders. After initially serving as the third-string backup to Derek Carr and Matt McGloin, Cook played in his first NFL game in the Raiders' last regular season game of the 2016 NFL season after Carr and McGloin suffered injuries. Following this, he was named the starter for the Raiders' playoff game against the Houston Texans and became the first quarterback in NFL history to make his first career start in a playoff game.

Connor Cook
Free agent
Position:Quarterback
Personal information
Born: (1993-01-29) January 29, 1993
Parma Heights, Ohio
Height:6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
High school:Walsh Jesuit
(Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio)
College:Michigan State
NFL Draft:2016 / Round: 4 / Pick: 100
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics as of 2018
Pass attempts:21
Pass completions:14
Percentage:66.7
TD–INT:1–1
Passing yards:150
Passer rating:83.4
Player stats at NFL.com

Early years

Cook was born in Parma Heights, Ohio, on January 29, 1993. Cook is from an athletic family: His father, Chris, played football at Indiana; his mother, Donna, played basketball at Cincinnati; and his older sister, Jackie, played basketball at Old Dominion.[1] Cook attended Walsh Jesuit High School in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio. He was ranked as the nation's 13th best quarterback recruit by Rivals.com.[2]

College career

Upon enrolling at Michigan State, Cook was redshirted as a freshman in 2011. He spent the 2012 season as a backup to Andrew Maxwell.[3] After Maxwell was benched, Cook helped lead the team to a win in the 2012 Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl, completing four of 11 passes for 47 yards and a touchdown.[4] Overall, he appeared in three games, completing nine of 17 passes for 94 yards with a touchdown and an interception. He entered the 2013 season as the backup to Maxwell again. After Maxwell struggled, Cook took over as the starter after the first game and remained the starter the rest of the year.[5] He led Michigan State to a 34-24 victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Big Ten Championship Game and was named MVP after throwing for 304 yards with three touchdowns.[6][7] He then led the Spartans to a 24–20 victory over Stanford in the 2014 Rose Bowl. He was named the offensive MVP after throwing for 332 yards and two touchdowns.[8] Cook finished the season with 2,755 passing yards and 22 touchdowns.

As a junior in 2014, Cook passed 3,214 yards with 24 touchdowns. He led the Spartans to 2015 Cotton Bowl, where they defeated the higher-ranked Baylor Bears, 42–41.[9] As a senior in 2015 Cook led the Spartans to a 16–13 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Big Ten Championship Game and was named MVP for the second time in three years. Cook had an embarrassing moment immediately after this game when he appeared to snub two-time Heisman Trophy winner Archie Griffin, who was attempting to hand him the game's MVP trophy. Cook later apologized for the snub.[10]

The victory in that Big Ten Championship Game earned them a spot in the College Football Playoff (2015 Cotton Bowl), where they lost to the Alabama Crimson Tide, 38–0. Cook finished the season with 3,131 passing yards and 24 touchdowns, completing 56% of his passes. He won the 2015 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award as the nation's outstanding senior or fourth year quarterback. For his career, he completed 673 of 1,170 passes for a school record 9,194 yards with 71 touchdowns and 22 interceptions.

College statistics
Season Passing Rushing
CmpAttYdsPctTDIntRtgAttYdsAvgTD
2012 9179452.911107.04−3−0.80
2013 2233802,75558.7226135.569761.11
2014 2123653,21458.1248149.451801.52
2015 2294083,13156.1247136.652561.10
NCAA career totals[11] 6731,1709,19457.57122139.81762091.23

Professional career
Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight Arm length Hand size 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split 20-yard shuttle Three-cone drill Vertical jump Broad jump Wonderlic
6 ft 4 in
(1.93 m)		 217 lb
(98 kg)		 33 in
(0.84 m)		 9 in
(0.23 m)		 4.79 s 1.68 s 2.79 s 4.28 s 7.21 s 33 in
(0.84 m)		 9 ft 5 in
(2.87 m)		 25[12]
All values from NFL Combine[13]

Oakland Raiders

Cook was drafted by the Oakland Raiders in the fourth round with the 100th pick in the 2016 NFL Draft. He was the seventh quarterback chosen in the draft.[14] On May 9, 2016, the Raiders signed Cook to a 4-year, $2.95 million contract with a signing bonus of $619,890.[15]

Cook began his rookie season for the Raiders as the third-string quarterback on the depth chart behind starter Derek Carr and second-stringer Matt McGloin. On December 24, 2016, Cook was raised to backup quarterback after Carr suffered a season-ending right fibula injury. On January 1, 2017, Cook made his NFL debut, entering the game late in the first half after starter McGloin suffered a shoulder injury.[16] He played for the remainder of the game. In the third quarter, he threw his first NFL touchdown, a 32-yard pass to wide receiver Amari Cooper. He completed 14 of 21 passes for 150 passing yards, a touchdown, and an interception as the Raiders lost to the Denver Broncos by a score of 24–6.[17] On January 4, Cook was named the starter for the AFC Wildcard Game against the Houston Texans.[18] McGloin was limited in practice due to his injury but was still active as Cook's backup for the playoff game.[19][20][21] Cook became the first quarterback in the Super Bowl era to make his first career start in a playoff game.[22][23] On January 7, 2017, in the AFC Wildcard Game against the Texans, Cook completed 18 of 45 passes for 161 yards, one touchdown, and three interceptions as the Raiders lost 27–14.[24] In the loss, he threw his first career postseason touchdown to Andre Holmes in the fourth quarter.

Cook saw no action in 2017 as the third-string quarterback behind Carr and new second-stringer EJ Manuel. He was only active for one game the whole season.

On September 1, 2018, Cook was released after the Raiders traded for AJ McCarron.[25]

Carolina Panthers

On September 6, 2018, Cook was signed to the Carolina Panthers' practice squad.[26] He was released on October 9, 2018.[27]

Cincinnati Bengals

Cook was signed by the Cincinnati Bengals to their practice squad on November 5, 2018.[28]

Detroit Lions

On January 1, 2019, Cook signed a reserve/future contract with the Detroit Lions.[29] In June 2019, the Lions released Cook and signed Quarterback David Fales.[30]

Houston Roughnecks

Cook was drafted in the 1st round second pick of the 2020 XFL Draft by the Houston Roughnecks.[30][31] However, Cook lost the quarterback competition to assigned player P.J. Walker and assumed the backup position.[30] He had his contract terminated when the league suspended operations on April 10, 2020.[32]

Career statistics

Regular season
YearTeamLeagueGPGSPassingRushing
CmpAttPctYdsY/ATDIntRtgAttYdsAvgTD
2016OAKNFL10142166.71507.11183.4000.00
2017OAKNFL00DNP
Career10142166.71507.11183.4000.00

Postseason
YearTeamLeagueGPGSPassingRushing
CmpAttPctYdsY/ATDIntRtgAttYdsAvgTD
2016OAKNFL11184540.01613.61330.0000.00
Career11184540.01613.61330.0000.00

Source:[33]

gollark: Well, I clearly would.
gollark: I would also have an ominously large and mazelike basement.
gollark: Your subjective preferences are, unlike mine, wrong.
gollark: Oh yes, *wood*, the flammable thing which comes from trees and causes splinters. I totally want that.
gollark: Also pleasant coloured walls.

References
  1. https://www.mercurynews.com/2017/01/04/ten-things-to-know-about-raiders-qb-connor-cook/
  2. "Connor Cook".
  3. "Michigan State backup QB Connor Cook knows he's behind Andrew Maxwell ... for now at least". MLive.com.
  4. "Michigan State redshirt freshman quarterback Connor Cook emerges in Spartans' 17–16 Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl win over TCU". MLive.com.
  5. "Michigan State to start Connor Cook against South Florida, with Tyler O'Connor as his backup". MLive.com.
  6. "Big Ten Championship: Michigan State's Connor Cook wants a repeat".
  7. "MSU quarterback Connor Cook still hungry after feasting in 2013 - FOX Sports". July 27, 2014.
  8. "Michigan State's Connor Cook rebounds from interception, grabs Rose Bowl offensive MVP".
  9. "Michigan State vs. Baylor - Game Recap - January 1, 2015 - ESPN". ESPN.com.
  10. "Archie Griffin accepts MSU QB Cook's apology". December 11, 2015. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
  11. "Connor Cook". www.sports-reference.com. USA TODAY Sports Digital Properties. Retrieved January 11, 2016.
  12. McGinn, Bob (April 20, 2016). "Rating the NFL draft prospects: Quarterbacks". JSOnline.com. Archived from the original on March 23, 2017. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  13. "NFL Events: Combine Player Profiles - Connor Cook". National Football League.
  14. "Raiders help kick off fourth round with pick of Connor Cook". espn.com. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  15. "Spotrac.com: Connor Cook contract". spotrac.com. Retrieved December 21, 2016.
  16. Paskal, Eddie (January 1, 2017). "Oakland Raiders Wrap Up Regular Season With 24-6 Loss To Denver Broncos". raiders.com. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
  17. Gutierrez, Paul (January 1, 2017). "Rookie QB Connor Cook takes over for Matt McGloin in Raiders' loss". espn.com. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
  18. "Raiders Announce Connor Cook To Start Playoff Game Vs. Texans". Associated Press. sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com. January 1, 2017. Retrieved January 8, 2017.
  19. "Matt McGloin expected to be active as backup". nfl.com. January 7, 2017. Retrieved January 8, 2017.
  20. "With Matt McGloin Available, Raiders Decide to Stick With Connor Cook". Associated Press. nytimes.com. January 8, 2017. Retrieved January 8, 2017.
  21. DaSilva, Cameron (January 8, 2017). "Raiders coach Jack Del Rio admits he considered benching Connor Cook". foxsports.com. Retrieved January 8, 2017.
  22. Orr, Connor (January 3, 2017). "Raiders expected to start Connor Cook vs. Texans". nfl.com. Retrieved January 3, 2017.
  23. Gutierrez, Paul (January 4, 2017). "Raiders' Connor Cook to make first career start Saturday vs. Texans". ESPN.
  24. "NFL Game Center: Week 18-2016: Oakland Raiders @ Houston Texans". NFL.com. Retrieved January 7, 2017.
  25. "Oakland Raiders announce roster transactions - 9.1.18". Raiders.com. September 1, 2018.
  26. "Panthers sign Connor Cook to practice squad". Panthers.com. September 6, 2018.
  27. "Panthers add LB Brandon Chubb to practice squad". Panthers.com. October 9, 2018.
  28. Staszewski, Joseph (November 5, 2018). "Things keep getting worse for Christian Hackenberg". NYPost.com.
  29. "Matthew Stafford's new backup: Detroit Lions sign ex-MSU QB Connor Cook". Freep.com. January 1, 2019.
  30. Raven, Benjamin (February 6, 2020). "Connor Cook reportedly loses QB competition for XFL's Houston Roughnecks". MLive Detroit. Mlive Media Group. Retrieved February 10, 2020.
  31. Bender, Bill (October 21, 2019). "XFL Draft picks 2019: Complete results, rosters, players for new football league". Sporting News. Retrieved October 22, 2019.
  32. Condotta, Bob (April 10, 2020). "XFL suspends operations, terminates all employees, but Jim Zorn says he has hopes league will continue". SeattleTimes.com. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  33. "Connor Cook". pro-football-reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved January 1, 2017.
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