There was a concern during the middle of last week about Philadelphia Eagles defensive lineman Fletcher Cox’s status to play the Cowboys on Sunday night.
The 28-year-old missed practice on Wednesday with what the Eagles described as an “illness.”
While there were no details about it, Cox was back with the team on Thursday and was on the field during Sunday night’s loss.
It turns out, however, that Cox’s absence wasn’t because of an illness.
A report from ABC 6 on Wednesday morning revealed that Cox had to fend off a burglar with a shotgun.
“According to court records, Corbyn Nyemah showed up at Cox’s house looking for his ex-girlfriend,” Chad Pradelli of ABC 6 wrote. “Nyemah allegedly damaged her vehicle before attempting to forcibly enter the home by throwing rocks through the front door.”
Nyemah was also caught on video surveillance circling the property with a baseball bat before trying to enter the garage of Cox’s Mullica Hill, NJ home.
Cox grabbed his shotgun and called the police, forcing Nyemah to flee in his Porsche SUV. He was apprehended and arrested later in the week.
While the Eagles could have used the “illness” tag as a way to give Cox the day off while giving him the privacy to sort things out, the team could now be facing sanctions from the NFL for lying on their injury report.
