Damonte Coxie is a burgeoning star with the Toronto Argonauts but it wasn’t long ago his football career seemed all but finished.
The 28-year-old posted elite production during his four-year collegiate career at the University of Memphis, catching 185 passes for 2,948 yards and 20 touchdowns. After his final season in 2020, however he garnered little NFL interest, remaining unsigned after a rookie minicamp invitation from the Green Bay Packers.
“It was an awakening moment,” Coxie told 3DownNation. “God had sat me down and told me: ‘This is a decision. You can go left and stay where you’re at or you could keep working and get to where you want to go.’ I had to make a real decision: am I going to allow my situation to take the best of me or am I going to overcome it? I chose to overcome that situation.”
The Reserve, La. native pivoted to Amazon where he worked as a delivery driver for around two years when the Argos came calling. He worked eight-hour shifts during the day and continued his football training in the afternoons and evenings. It was a grind with no guarantees the hard work would pay off.
“Those days was tough, it was really tough – I’m not even gonna lie. There was some days: ‘What am I doing? If ain’t nobody calling, am I working out for my health?’ But those are the thoughts you gotta fight, especially getting comfortable, getting complacent. You’ve gotta always know there’s a bigger picture,” Coxie said.
“I can’t not be putting in work because I’m not going to prepare myself for when opportunity presents itself. You always want to be ready for your opportunity. You don’t want to get it and you’re not ready.”
One reason Coxie may never have gotten a serious NFL shot was his relatively average pro day testing numbers. He reportedly ran a 4.77-second 40-yard dash, recorded a 30.5-inch vertical jump and repped 225 pounds on the bench press four times. Those results would have put him near the bottom among receivers at the 2025 CFL Combine.
With his strict training regiment being an asset, Coxie took full advantage when the Boatmen presented an opportunity in 2022. He cracked the starting lineup near the midway point that season and even though he finished the year on the six-game injured list, Toronto knew there was a potential star to bring back in 2023.
In total, the six-foot-two, 200-pound target has made 113 receptions for 1,857 yards and nine touchdowns over 38 career CFL games, including a career-high 59 catches for 860 yards and four scores in 2024. After winning a Grey Cup on the bench in 2022, he won a championship on the field as a starter two years later.
With quarterback Chad Kelly expected back under centre for a full season in 2025, it’s possible Coxie could reach the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his CFL career.
“It’s tough when you don’t see instant results and the only thing you’ve got is faith,” Coxie said. “You’ve got to keep that mindset that you’re a dog and you know you’re a dog and eventually, they’re coming. Every dog got their day, so you gotta keep working.”
The post Damonte Coxie went from Amazon delivery driver to CFL star with Toronto Argonauts appeared first on 3DownNation.
