Tracking the Pack: Life as a Rookie Free Agent

RALEIGH, N.C. - A four-year starting punter with the Wolfpack, A.J. Cole III got his dream call to try out for the NFL. He just took an indirect route to get there.

Cole, and the rest of the Oakland Raiders' rookie class, will report to training camp July 23 in Napa, California, while the veterans report on July 26.

Here is Cole's story about his journey from Raleigh, 2,828 miles west to Oakland, Calif.

On the excitement of competing for an NFL job:

Cole: This whole experience is unbelievable so far. To look back, early on in high school, I didn't really think it was all that possible I was even going to play college football. But things broke my way, I got a scholarship, and I was able to be the starting punter at NC State for four years. Then for a while in college, I was just assuming I was going to play four years and then go get a job. But after that last bowl game (in Jacksonville), I got a chance to pursue continuing my career. This whole process has really been unbelievable and something you think about your entire life. I would say it is something that was a goal, but I didn't know if it was always a realistic outcome,

On the process of training full-time after the bowl game:

Cole: It was really a whirlwind few months. The East-West Shrine Game was about two weeks after we got back from Jacksonville, so I went back home and trained with my punting coach. After that Shrine game, I was back up in Raleigh for a couple of weeks before I moved down to Birmingham and during that time I flew out to Phoenix for a couple of weekends in February to train. Back up to Raleigh for our Pro Day, then I had to move out of my apartment in April and went back home to Atlanta. There were some workouts I had with teams before the draft. Once that came and went, I was off to rookie mini-camp.

On feedback from NFL scouts in attendance at NC State's Pro Day:

Cole: I didn't feel it was a great day for me to be honest. At the end, we went outside and had some tough winds to kick into. The feedback I got from scouts that day was more from the past season and previous years, not from kicking that day. Nobody mentioned anything good or bad from pro day.

On expectations of the 2019 NFL Draft:

Cole: The odds of a punter getting drafted are pretty slim. I ran through some scenarios in my head, but I really didn't have any expectations of getting drafted. But, I really did think from the way I was talking to teams prior to the draft, that I would have been one of those guys that was offered a contract right at the end as a priority rookie free agent. That is where I saw my stock going into the draft, and that is what I was hearing from my agent about what was likely. I didn't end up with that contract that weekend, so I had to go and get a contract the tougher way.

On being invited to a rookie mini-camp tryout:

Cole: Me and my agent were going back and forth with a couple different teams. I got a really, really strong vibe from the Raiders and felt like they were interested in me. I felt they evaluated me thoroughly. Going there that weekend, I felt even if I did not get a contract I was going to get really good coaching and that was a major benefit. That was the first weekend I set that trip up, and I actually set one up the next weekend with the Falcons. I had a good workout with Atlanta in the pre-draft process, but the Oakland trip worked out and I came away with a contract from that weekend.

On earning the contract with Oakland after rookie mini-camp:

Cole: I was offered on the spot right after practice. I'm on a standard rookie free agent contract. Nothing is guaranteed besides a signing bonus. It is me and the punter they drafted last year competing for the job.

On going back out to Oakland for OTAs:

Cole: I think it went really well. It was a great opportunity to get out there with the entire team. Our specials teams coordinator (Rich Bisaccia) has been around the game for a long time, and is a very experienced special teams coach. I think I have a good understanding of what he is looking for in a punter already, so I felt like I had a great opportunity to learn from someone that has been in the business and has the experience he has. Although it has just been a short time, getting the experience of what it is like to be in the NFL is definitely different and a higher level. I'm glad I had the opportunity to get out there, put the work in, and put some good stuff on film.

On the focus between now and the start of training camp:

Cole: I still have some minor stuff in both my punting and my holding that I want to tweak and improve before training camp. Working on those improvements and just becoming more consistent - because in the NFL you can't have a good day then a bad day. You have to be really good every day or you are not going to have a job for very long. I want to focus on being the best version of myself at all times.

On having the chance to also win a job doing kickoffs:

Cole: I will also have the chance to compete for the kickoff job. Hopefully I will have the opportunity to do that in a preseason game and show my versatility.

On HBO's Hard Knocks filming the Raiders this training camp:

Cole: I have no idea what that is going to be like. We had the One with Wolfpack Football here at NC State, but that was all accomplished mainly with just one camera. We have kind of heard that you can't go anywhere besides your room without a camera being able to film. It is going to be interesting and it is going to be different. I know that it is not going to be a worry for anybody, because we are there fighting for jobs. You can probably expect punters will not be getting that much air time!

On doing things off the field as a rookie class:

Cole: We have done some cool rookie group events and some fan engagement stuff. We went to Google and got to take that tour which was awesome. I did industrial engineering at NC State, so I was familiar with that world and it was really neat to see how that company works. We also got to go to Six Flags as a group. They know how tough it is going from the college situation where you have known the same guys for four years to all of a sudden moving to a different part of the country, living out of a hotel, surrounded by people you just met.

On going from #90 at NC State to #6 with the Raiders:

Cole: That was actually the only single digit number that was available when I signed.

Players Mentioned

A.J. Cole III

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