Cole hopes to learn from mistake in debut

PHILADELPHIA - Trent Cole had the instructions drummed into his head by Philadelphia's coaches all week: Don't leave your feet when Atlanta's Michael Vick pump-fakes.

So when Vick pump-faked early in the second quarter of Monday night's game, the Eagles rookie defensive end did what most rookies would do - he bit and left his feet. Vick darted around him for a 9-yard gain and Cole, well, Cole took a seat on the bench.

"It's the one play I messed up on and it cost me," Cole said. "It cost me some playing time."

Welcome to the NFL, kid.

Cole, a 6-foot-3, 260-pound defensive end, stayed in long enough to make a tackle on the next play and that was about it. His NFL debut was essentially over, except for a few plays on punt and kickoff coverage.

Cole certainly wasn't the first player fooled by Vick, and he surely won't be the last. That didn't matter to Cole, who knew right away his miscue might land him on the bench. It also drew stern words from defensive line coach Tommy Brasher.

"I knew I wasn't supposed to jump and I jumped, Cole said. "When you're told not to, you don't do it. It's called discipline."

It's just part of the steep learning curve for Cole, a fifth-round draft pick out of Cincinnati.

Cole already feels a bit behind in learning the defense because he missed so much of training camp. He strained a chest ligament in the preseason opener against Pittsburgh and did not play again until the final game.

Cole was nervous when the final cuts were announced, but a roster spot was never really in doubt. With 34-year-old Hugh Douglas unable to regain his form after offseason shoulder surgery and projected starter Jerome McDougle still recovering from a gunshot wound, the Eagles needed all the bodies they could muster for the defensive line.

While Cole missed most of missed training camp, he looked impressive in games.

"He showed everybody he deserves to be here and deserves a look," starting defensive end N.D. Kalu said.

With Jevon Kearse and Kalu starting at the ends, Cole and fifth-year pro Juqua Thomas are the only viable backups. Defensive coordinator Jim Johnson said he'd like to work in Cole for about 20 or 30 plays against San Francisco.

"He's a rookie and makes a rookie mistake... so we were a bit concerned," Johnson said. "But we have to force ourselves to give him more time."

Cole hopes to have better success against San Francisco's Tim Rattay. Rattay is more of a pocket passer who rarely runs. That's the kind of quarterback that makes Cole comfortable. After all, he finished his career at Cincinnati with 19 sacks - third on the school's career list.

This time, he hopes to do what his coaches tell him.

"I learned my lesson," Cole said. "You've got to learn from games and I learned from this one."