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Connor Cook dimisses talk of character concerns: My teammates considered me a leader

Rey Del Rio / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The biggest challenge former Michigan State quarterback Connor Cook arguably faces ahead of the 2016 NFL Draft is convincing teams that concerns about his character are completely without merit.

Questions over his perceived immaturity, lack of leadership qualities, and arrogance have hung over his head in recent years, causing many to consider him a potential mid-round pick despite his impressive skill set.

Cook defended himself from a barrage of questions on Thursday from reporters at the NFL Combine, especially regarding why he was never voted a team captain in college.

"If you want to go through and ask one of my teammates who were with me in 2013 when I was a sophomore, 2014 when I was a junior, and this past year, and ask them if I was a team leader, they would say 'yes.'" Cook said, according to Lorenzo Reyes of USA TODAY.

The 23-year-old admitted that he understood why teams would ask for an explanation as to why he wasn't a team captain, but emphasized that he still had a significant leadership role at Michigan State.

"We had a great group of leaders that were seniors," Cook said. "We had a leadership council of 12 guys. They would pick, each and every week, a guy in that council, which I was in, to be a captain. I was selected for four games. Usually guys get selected only once throughout the season."

Cook also dismissed talk of his arrogance, saying that a confident mentality is necessary to playing the quarterback position.

"Maybe they're getting it mixed up with confidence," Cook said. "I think being a quarterback, you always have to be confident. It doesn't even have to be a quarterback. Anything you're doing on the football field, or any sport - basketball, baseball, or in life as a businessman - you've got to be confident, and I have always been confident in myself, no matter what it is."

Cook confirmed that he will join his fellow quarterbacks on Saturday for the passing drills.

"My shoulder is 100 percent healthy, I will be throwing," Cook said.

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