After years of injury and rehabilitation, NFL running back Tarik Cohen is nearly ready to set foot on an NFL field once again. Cohen, a former running back for the North Carolina A&T State Aggies, signed with his hometown Carolina Panthers in September as a member of the practice squad.

Cohen was an elite prospect coming out of North Carolina A&T. In 2017, the Chicago Bears selected him in the fourth round with the 119th overall pick. Despite his small stature of just 5'6″, the 180-pound running back impressed teams at the NFL Combine with is 4.42 second 40-yard dash. Unfortunately, Cohen suffered a gruesome ACL and MCL tear in his knee early in the 2020 season. Even worse, he then tore his Achilles in 2022.

Cohen now feels, after cycles of physical therapy and rehab, that he is ready for NFL action.

“I definitely started to feel, you know, more comfortable to what I'm used to,” he said. “Little things like the handoff, making sure you have the ball in the right hand – you know it's just some of those things that I still have to shake out the kinks of and train my eyes to get them back in the right spots.”

At North Carolina A&T, Cohen was a superstar. In 2015 he won just about every award possible, including the Celebration Bowl Offensive MVP. Cohen powered the Aggies to a 41-34 victory over Alcorn State with 295 rushing yards and three touchdowns.

Three years later in 2018, Cohen made the Pro Bowl and an All-Pro team. In addition to his traditional carries, Cohen caught 71 balls for 725 receiving yards, numbers that easily eclipsed other actual wide receivers.

Despite the former glory, Cohen remains humble with his new team, focused just on helping however he can.

“I just want to get on the field and make an impact,” he told Andscape. “Whether that be on special teams or offense. Or even if it's just motivating the guys and giving them some knowledge I've gained over the years, I want to make my presence felt.”