Phil Costa (American football)
| No. 67 | |||||||||
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| Position: | Center, Guard | ||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||
| Date of birth: | July 11, 1987 | ||||||||
| Place of birth: | Moorestown Township, New Jersey | ||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 302 lb (137 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | Maryland | ||||||||
| Undrafted: | 2010 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||||
| Roster status: | Retired | ||||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| Player stats at PFR | |||||||||
Phil Costa (born July 11, 1987) is a former American football center and guard in the National Football League (NFL). He was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dallas Cowboys after he went undrafted in the 2010 NFL Draft. Costa retired at age 26 on April 21, 2014.
Early years
Costa played high school football at Holy Cross High School, where he was a starting guard who played in every game during his three seasons on the team. He played college football at Maryland where he was a two year starter, playing mostly guard until his senior season when he started at center.[1]
Professional career
Dallas Cowboys
Costa was signed by the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent after the 2010 NFL Draft. He began as the fourth string center, with Kyle Kosier and Travis Bright ahead of him, but when Kosier got hurt and Bright struggled, Costa became the primary backup. He impressed the coaching staff and made the opening day 53-man roster. As a rookie he earned his first career start at left guard in place of the injured Kyle Kosier and Montrae Holland, in the seventh game of the season against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
He performed well during the 2011 training camp and preseason, before suffering a strained right posterior cruciate ligament on August 24, 2011.[2] After contract restructuring negotiations fell through, five time Pro Bowl center Andre Gurode was cut before the fourth preseason game and Costa became the starting center for the year.[3] Because of his small size for the position, as the season wore on he was exposed and struggled in his blocking assignments against bigger defenders.
In 2012, the Cowboys signed free agents guards Mackenzy Bernadeau and Nate Livings to help protect Costa against stronger defensive fronts. Ryan Cook replaced him in the season opener after one series, because he was limited by a back injury he carried from training camp. He returned to play against the Baltimore Ravens and arguably had his best game as a pro, with the Ravens yielding a franchise record 227 rushing yards. In the next game against the Carolina Panthers, he suffered a partially dislocated ankle and was eventually placed on the injured reserve list, after playing only six quarters in the season.
Looking to improve the center position, the Cowboys selected Travis Frederick in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft and moved Costa to a backup role during training camp.[4] He was eventually waived in a salary cap move on March 7, 2014.[5]
Indianapolis Colts
Costa signed a two-year contract with the Indianapolis Colts on March 13, 2014.[6] He unexpectedly retired at age 26 on April 21, 2014.[7]
Personal life
Costa became engaged to singer, actress, model, and reality show personality Brooke Hogan (daughter of professional wrestler Hulk Hogan) on June 29, 2013 in Las Vegas.[8] On November 24, 2013, Hogan called off the engagement.[9]
References
- ↑ Phil Costa, Maryland Terrapins football. Accessed March 1, 2011.
- ↑ Clarence Hill, Jr. (2011-08-25). "Knee injury stalls rise for Cowboys center Costa". Retrieved 2011-09-06.
- ↑ "Cowboys release Gurode, go with three new starters". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 29 August 2011.
- ↑ http://espn.go.com/blog/dallas/cowboys/post/_/id/4709668/phil-costa-keeps-fighting
- ↑ http://espn.go.com/dallas/nfl/story/_/id/10569561-cowboys-release-phil-costa-make-other-moves-get-cap
- ↑ Colts Add a Center in Phil Costa
- ↑ Wells, Mike (April 21, 2014). "Costa's retirement puts Colts in tough spot". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
- ↑ Frank Schwab (June 30, 2013). Cowboys center Phil Costa gets engaged to Hulk Hogan’s daughter Brooke Yahoo Sports. Accessed 2013-06-30.
- ↑ "Brooke Hogan, Phil Costa reportedly split". USA Today.