Tarik Cohen's Frustrating Pool Outing Set Stage for Jets Opportunity

Tarik Cohen was once the pinnacle of special teams stars in the NFL.

For the better part of the last four seasons, the former first-team All-Pro returner has been recovering from a series of ACL and Achilles surgeries. He hasn't appeared in an NFL game since the 2020 season due to those injuries.

At one point during his rehab, the former Chicago Bear let himself go, and gained a lot of weight - any thoughts of a return to the NFL forgotten. It took a picture from a friend in his pool to alter the outlook of Cohen's lifestyle and future.

"I let myself get fat, but it got really easy once I saw a picture of myself," Cohen said Tuesday. "I turned it on without the intention of getting back on the field. I just started grinding and my body started to feel way better."

That picture Cohen was so concerned over depicted a player who had reached 208 pounds after multiple knee surgeries. It was something he wasn't particularly pleased with in himself.

"I almost threw my phone against the wall," Cohen said.

An interesting thing happened once Cohen got back into football shape, though. The NFL made a rule change to the kickoff that wouldn't encourage teams to try and make big returns during games.

That was the chance Cohen needed to make his return to the league - for whoever team needed a former All-Pro return specialist.

A few months after the rule change, the New York Jets allowed Cohen to come back to the NFL world, and back in the confines of his athletic brethren.

"It's a great feeling," the former fourth-round pick out of North Carolina A&T said. "When you are out of the league and locker room, you miss that vibe, that camaraderie with your brothers so it's good to be back."

Cohen's role with the Jets is still something that is being ironed out. Special teams coordinator Brant Boyer has called New York's depth at kick and punt return "an army" as they try and figure out the best way to utilize the rule changes.

For a player of Cohen's stature and legacy, though, the chance is there for the Jets to continue as one of the league's best special teams units.

"The potential is great for returners," Cohen said. "You got a great return team, a great scheme as well, it's an opportunity for a lot of guys to make a lot of plays. It's very exciting for me. It feels like a custom-made position, they just added a football that I can compete and play."

So what will his role be on the Jets? That answer may still be undecided, but the organization remains impressed by what they've seen out of the running back by trade.

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"I think he's doing a nice job," Boyer explained. "Obviously, there are some things to clean up and stuff, but he's a hell of a player and he's got really good vision, really good run skill and they're working hard back there, and we'll see how it all shakes out at the end."

From hating a photo of himself to competing for a spot on a playoff-contending team like the Jets, Cohen's journey over the last four years has been a rollercoaster.

Now, one rule change has given the returner a new life in his NFL career.