ELF: Wroclaw Panthers sign former NFL receiver Matt Cole
The Wroclaw Panthers have found an offensive playmaker for 2024 European League of Football season , as the team announced the signing of former NFL receiver Matt Cole.
The 27 year old Cole was born and raised in Chicago, and played collegiately at McKendree University, a NCAA Division II program in Illinois. In three seasons with the Bearcats, he recorded 85 catches for 1,471 yards and 16 touchdowns, along with 46 carries for 313 yards and a score. He also handled return duties, and he ran three kickoffs back for touchdowns, and also returned a punt for a touchdown.
After he left McKendree, he was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Miami Dolphins in 2020. He stayed on the team’s practice squad until December of that year, when he was acquired by the San Francisco 49ers. Cole saw some action in the 49ers’ final game of the season, as he recorded a couple of tackles on special teams.
Over the next year, Cole would bounce around from the New York Jets to the New York Giants to the Carolina Panthers. With the Panthers, he saw action on special teams in 2021. He later had brief stints with the Seattle Seahawks and Washington Commanders. In 2023, Cole signed with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League, but was released after the first week of the season.
Cole will be making his debut in Europe this season, but he’ll have at least one familiar face on his new team. In college, Cole was teammates with A.J. Wentland, now a star linebacker on the Panthers. That was likely a strong factor in Cole’s decision to sign with the team.
The Wroclaw Panthers have been making a lot of noise this offseason, with the extension of Wentland, as well as the signings of defensive back and return specialist Devan Burrell, tight end Adria Botella Moreno, and offensive lineman Keanu Ebanks. Of course, they also have a lot of Polish talent in the fold for 2024, most notably star running back Dawid Brzozowski. The team still needs to find a quarterback, but they’ve otherwise been doing a great job of finding talent on both sides of the ball.
