Arthur Dean Cox (born February 5, 1961) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

tight end The tight end (TE) is a position in American football, arena football, and Canadian football, on the offense. The tight end is often a hybrid position with the characteristics and roles of both an offensive lineman and a wide receiver. Lik ...

in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

. Playing college football at

Texas Southern University Texas Southern University (Texas Southern or TSU) is a public historically black university in Houston, Texas. The university is one of the largest and most comprehensive historically black college or universities in the USA with nearly 10,00 ...

, he went undrafted, and signed with the Atlanta Falcons before the 1983 season. He eventually became the Falcons' full-time starting tight end and had his most productive seasons in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

and

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

(where he had a career high 454 receiving yards). Cox's productivity decreased in the following two seasons, and following the 1987 season, the Falcons chose not to resign him. Before the 1988 season, he signed with the San Diego Chargers, who later hired his old Falcons head coach

Dan Henning Daniel Ernest Henning, (born June 21, 1942) is a former American football player and coach. A quarterback, he played college football at the College of William & Mary and professional football in 1966 for the San Diego Chargers of the America ...

. There, Cox immediately became a starter and maintained his reputation as a tough player and as a respected run-blocking tight end. In

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phi ...

, he lost his starter role, and was limited to playing in formations utilizing three tight ends. With the imminent reactivation of rookie tight end

Duane Young Curtis Duane Young Sr. (born May 29, 1968) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Michigan State Spartans. Young was selected by the Sa ...

from the

injured reserve list The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

, the Chargers released Cox on October 29. Cox subsequently was signed by the

Miami Dolphins The Miami Dolphins are a professional American football team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member team of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. The team p ...

, but was waived on November 18, following two weeks of playing on special teams and goal line formations. He was quickly signed by the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (A ...

, for whom he played his last three NFL games. Cox has one child (Artesha). Cox grew up in

Plant City, Florida Plant City is an incorporated city in Hillsborough County, Florida, United States, approximately midway between Brandon and Lakeland along Interstate 4. The population was 39,764 at the 2020 census. Despite many thinking it was named for flora ...

, as one of 10 children. His father died when Cox was young.

References

1961 births Living people People from Plant City, Florida American football tight ends Texas Southern Tigers football players Atlanta Falcons players San Diego Chargers players Cleveland Browns players Miami Dolphins players Players of American football from Florida {{tightend-1960s-stub