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Jaguars Cornerback Derek Cox Making Most of Playing Time Following Week 1 Benching

Second-year Jaguars cornerback Derek Cox just needed a little time to himself to get back into the swing of things.

So far this season, Cox has seen time in the starting lineup, on the bench and on the inactive list, something Cox hasn’t had much of a reaction to.

“Football is what I do. It doesn’t define me,” Cox said. “I shouldn’t define any of these guys in here. If you look at the grand scheme of it, a football career, that’s a smidgen of your life. Even the guys that play double-digit years, it’s a smidgen of their lifetime and their life span. While I’m doing it, I give it my all. My passion is there and desire will always remain.”

In the Jaguars season opener against the Denver Broncos, the cornerback was getting smoked off the line and this led to a benching early in the game Cox saw one snap over the next three weeks.

But the Jaguars gave him another chance against the Buffalo Bills in Week 5 and Cox proved himself by making five tackles and deflecting a pass.

“There’s a pretty strong likelihood that he reclaimed his position with that effort,” coach Jack Del Rio told the Associated Press. “He played well in his role, so that was good to see.”

It seems that taking a step backwards has helped Cox move forward from the rough start to his second season with the Jaguars.

“He kept his head up,” fellow cornerback Rashean Mathis said. “It was tough for him. He’s young, but has a good head on his shoulders. He took it well. He still competed. He still asked questions. He still wanted to do things the right way. I think that’s why when his number was called in the game, he was able to respond.”