Packers' Cobb refueled for season after big offseason
GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Receiver Randall Cobb has big plans for the future, whenever he's done playing football. He wants to get an MBA and perhaps go into football administration or coaching.
He might have looked into pursuing a graduate business degree this offseason, had he not gotten married and traveled to Africa for his honeymoon.
For now, he is refueled for football season, focused on his current job as one of quarterback Aaron Rodgers' top targets on a potent Green Bay Packers offense.
"I just graduated college (from Kentucky) two offseasons ago and this past offseason it was just a very busy time for me," Cobb said Tuesday about an MBA. "So this next offseason I'm going to start looking into what I can do and how I can get this process started."
Cobb is known for making tough catches in traffic. He'll sometimes line up in the backfield to throw a different wrinkle at defenses.
But injuries slowed Cobb down in 2016. He missed a game in October because of an ankle injury, his first game missed due to injury since Week 16 in 2013.
Cobb missed the final two weeks of the 2016 regular season with ankle injury, an ailment that also affected him in Week 15 against Chicago when Cobb was active but mainly served as decoy. He finished the year with 60 catches for 610 yards and four touchdowns, his lowest production since 2013, when he was limited to six games because of a knee injury.
"I feel like I'm on top of it for the most part. I've had changes in my nutrition over the years," Cobb, entering his seventh NFL season, said last week about adjusting following injuries. "I've had changes in the philosophy of what I do with keeping my body healthy and recovering in different ways. At the end of the day, a lot of injuries I had are acute injuries."
Cobb has been fielding punts early in camp, a sign that coach Mike McCarthy probably isn't too worried about Cobb's health. Cobb returned punts regularly his first two years in the league, returning two for scores.
The biggest changes this year have come off the field.
Cobb got married in April in an elaborate, black-tie ceremony at New York's posh Pierre Hotel. Rodgers and fellow Packers receiver Jordy Nelson were among the groomsmen.
A honeymoon to Africa followed. Cobb and his new wife, Aiyda, spent time in South Africa before going to a game reserve in the desert.
On July 17, Cobb found out that he was going to be inducted into his alma mater's Athletics Hall of Fame. Cobb had set an SEC single-season record in 2010 with 2,936 all-purpose yards. He owns the school career record with 37 touchdowns even though he played just three seasons, leaving for the NFL after his junior year.
He may not be able to make it to Lexington, though, since the Packers host the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday of the Sept. 22 induction weekend.
"Probably not," Cobb said with a laugh when asked if he'll be there. "Maybe if I can sneak out here Friday night and get back Friday night before practice on Saturday, so we'll see."
Taking classes for a business degree will probably have to wait until at least after football season, too. But Cobb has given a lot of thought to what he wants to do when he's done catching footballs. He wants to find a way to help players.
"As far as post-football, I want to get my MBA and possibly go into the administration of football or go into coaching, but I definitely want to get my MBA to start off," Cobb said.
"I think we have a lot of players that don't quite grasp or understand the other things that go along with being in the position that we are (in). So we'll see where that takes me."
