As the sixth round gave way to the seventh round and it became increasingly apparent Bryan Cox Jr. wouldn't be drafted last month, the food at his draft party started getting cold but none of the attendees got too hot _ including the host.
Considering Bryan Cox Sr. racked up fines totaling roughly $150,000 during his 12-year NFL career for offenses that included fighting, cussing at officials, spitting and throwing his helmet, you'd expect him to have heaved the remote or at least knocked over the chip bowl when his only son went undrafted.
But cooler heads prevailed at the Cox home in Duluth, Ga.
"He wasn't really upset. We were all just sick to our stomachs," Cox Jr. said recently. "We had a bunch of food prepared, but nobody ate. Everybody was kind of just moping around."
The mood improved when the Panthers called a short time later. They wanted Cox Jr., a defensive end from Florida, to sign as an undrafted free agent.
He had similar offers from Tampa Bay and the Chargers, but Cox Sr. _ an NFL defensive line coach for the past decade _ was confident his son would thrive under the tutelage of the Panthers' Eric Washington.
"He's by far the best defensive line coach in football," Cox Sr. said. "He's not paid the highest like some of these guys are. But when you turn on the tape you see the physicality, you see the hand placement, you see the pad level. You see just no-nonsense football."
Cox Sr.'s playing career featured its share of nonsense, at least in the eyes of former commissioner Paul Tagliabue.
Cox Sr. was fined one game check ($82,352) in 1996 for yelling and making an obscene gesture at an official. He then lined up for a PAT without a helmet, prompting Tagliabue to describe his behavior as "unprofessional, offensive to NFL fans and unbecoming an NFL player."
But both father and son say the Panthers won't have to worry about game-day extracurriculars with the younger Cox.
"He's a little more contained than I was. But he's like me in a lot of ways ... until he trusts you he's a little standoffish," Cox Sr. said. "He is a self-motivator but he is not as fiery as I was. He can get hot under the collar from time to time, but not nearly as much as I did."
While the two have similar builds, the 6-3, 265-pound Cox Jr. concedes he's a "little bit different" than his dad.
"I'm a little bit more timid, but I have a switch," he said. "I definitely have a switch."
