Everybody knows that football is a physical sport. It features grown men running into each other at high speeds. Certain collisions can be dangerous if technique is shoddy and players aren’t being smart. One other aspect that often gets overlooked is the vast difference in sizes the NFL features. There are men who play the game standing a rangy 6’9″ while others who barely clear 5’8″. When those men come together in contact, it doesn’t end well. New Bears rookie Tarik Cohen found that out the hard way thanks to Cody Whitehair.
It took place during one of their first padded practices at training camp. To the surprise (and delight) of many fans it was the fourth round pick out of North Carolina A&T who was delivering a host of impressive plays. His mixture of speed and quickness were evident each time he touched the football.
Trubisky to Cohen. pic.twitter.com/812S81BHU8
— Dave_Ye (@Dave_YeRN) July 29, 2017
Apparently this performance even got his veteran teammates riled up. It was during one sequence in practice where Cohen made a big play and must’ve felt equally big in size. For a moment he forgot he was the smallest man on the team at 5’6″, 181 lbs. Adam Hoge of WGN documented what happened next.
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Cody Whitehair flattened Cohen while celebrating
“That said, there have been some legitimate positive moments for Cohen in camp, including a cut up the middle Sunday that earned a fist bump from offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains. Cohen also caught two touchdowns the last two days. On Sunday, that led to an unfortunate chest bump celebration with center Cody Whitehair, which sent Cohen flying to the ground (Whitehair is 129 pounds heavier). Cohen learned his lesson, however, as Monday he went for the more controlled chest bump with tight end Daniel Brown.
“I ain’t gonna fall today,” Cohen said.”
Seems one could call that a perfect “Welcome to the NFL” moment for Cohen. Whitehair isn’t just a big man at 6’4″, 310 lbs. He’s also quite strong. It’s kind of a requirement given the equally big men he has to block every Sunday. So it’s a clear indicator of how clouded Cohen’s thinking was at the time of the celebration. He needs to remember his physics lessons. When smaller, lighter object meets bigger, heavier object the latter always wins.
If nothing else it’s a reflection of who Cohen is that he was smart enough to not do it again and tough enough to take it in the first place. Most human beings his size likely would’ve been carted off the field after that.
