Green Bay Signs Florida EDGE Brenton Cox Jr. as UDFA

Former Florida and Georgia edge rusher Brenton Cox Jr. becomes the final undrafted Gators contributor from a season ago to sign UDFA deal, heading to Green Bay.

Photo: Brenton Cox Jr.; Credit: Alex Shepherd 

Former Florida edge rusher Brenton Cox Jr. is officially a Packer, signing with Green Bay on Sunday evening after going unselected during the three-day selection event during the 2023 NFL Draft.

His brief hiatus from football comes to an end as he signs a deal with the historic NFC North franchise, Cox’s agency announced.

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A five-star recruit out of Stockbridge, Ga., Cox originally enrolled at Georgia in the recruiting class of 2018 but was dismissed from the team following his freshman season, in which he made 13 appearances. 

Cox chose to transfer to the Bulldogs' bitter rival, the Gators, before the 2019 season. He was forced to sit out and redshirted his sophomore year as a result of NCAA transfer rules at the time.

Upon regaining eligibility, Cox took over as the starting BUCK edge rusher in Florida's defensive scheme in 2020, replacing All-SEC edge and conference sack leader Jon Greenard from a year prior.

Cox became a routine presence in the opposing backfield quickly after taking on a first-team role, although he struggled to consistently turn quarterback pressures into sacks over the years.

Cox finished his UF career with 118 tackles, 32.5 tackles for loss, 13.5 sacks, seven pass breakups, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery in 33 games. He produced 104 quarterback pressures and 65 run stops during his time with the Gators, per Pro Football Focus.

His most impressive season came in 2021, when Cox recorded career-highs of 8.5 sacks and 14.5 tackles for loss following a late offseason procedure to address a Jones fracture that had gone undetected the prior year. 

Cox's time with the Gators came to an end following Florida's 42-20 loss to No. 1 Georgia in late Oct. 2022. Cox was let go from the team for undisclosed disciplinary reasons the following week, although head coach Billy Napier invited Cox back for the program's Pro Day event on March 28, 2023. He was also summoned to the NFL Combine this offseason, where he produced slightly above-average testing scores.

Cox becomes the fourth, and likely final, Gators undrafted free agent to put pen to paper on his deal, joining Richard Gouraige (Buffalo Bills), Trey Dean III (New York Jets) and Rashad Torrence II (Los Angeles Rams).

Six UF prospects were selected in the 2023 NFL Draft:

• QB Anthony Richardson, Indianapolis Colts, first round, No. 4 overall
• DL Gervon Dexter, Chicago Bears, second round, No. 53 overall
• OL O'Cyrus Torrence, Buffalo Bills, second round, No. 59 overall
• LB Ventrell Miller, Jacksonville Jaguars, fourth round, No. 121 overall
• WR Justin Shorter, Buffalo Bills, fifth round, No. 150 overall
• LB Amari Burney, Las Vegas Raiders, sixth round, No. 203 overall

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