Philadelphia Eagles player Fletcher Cox used a shotgun to defend his home last week from a bat-wielding man attempting to break into his house, court documents show.
The star defensive tackle armed himself after the man showed up at Cox's New Jersey home, vandalized the car of a woman who was inside, and began throwing rocks at the front door, according to court documents first obtained by WPVI. Security camera footage showed the man holding a baseball bat. He was apparently the woman's ex-boyfriend.
The man fled the scene after Cox armed himself and called the police. He then attempted to evade police but was later apprehended in Philadelphia.
The man's ex-girlfriend claimed he had texted her suicidal statements and images of him armed with a firearm. She obtained a restraining order against him after the incident. When contacted by WPVI, the would-be intruder said he was trying to talk to his ex-girlfriend because he had hoped to rekindle their relationship. He also confirmed much of the court documents' account.
Cox's representatives told WPVI that they did not yet have a statement on the situation. Cox himself did not comment on the situation when asked about it by the Courier-Post.
"I'm only here to talk about football," Cox told the paper. "I'm not here to discuss my personal life."
Eagles head coach Doug Pederson said the organization was aware of the incident but was leaving it to the police.
"The police are handling it," he told the Courier Post. "It's a personal issue, so I'm out of it."
Cox has long been open about his firearm ownership and love of hunting. A 2016 video from SilencerCo documented a hunting trip he took to South Texas on which he used one of the company's firearms suppressors.
The attempted intruder will reportedly appear in court later this month. There have been no reports of charges against Cox or any suggestion from law enforcement that he committed any crimes.