Eagles Rookie Already Making Case for Starting Job at Minicamp
By Jovan Alford
The Philadelphia Eagles made a concerted effort to address the secondary in the 2024 NFL Draft after seeing their pass defense struggle mightily in 2023. Philly’s defense allowed the second-most passing yards per game (252.7).
The Eagles took former Toledo cornerback Quinyon Mitchell in the first round and former Iowa defensive back Cooper DeJean in the second round. Both rookie defensive backs were ranked as some of the best in the class. However, it’s the latter, who is already starting to turn heads at minicamp.
CBS Sports Jeff Kerr noted DeJean is continuing to make plays in his latest Eagles mandatory minicamp observations.
“One day after almost having a pick six off Jalen Hurts, DeJean had a pass breakup on a pass intended for Shaq Davis to end the third-down competition. DeJean's play led to C.J. Gardner-Johnson celebrating with Brandon Smith as the defense took home the trophy.”
If you’re an Eagles fan, you love that the rookie cornerback is making plays in minicamp and showing off those ballhawk skills, which made him one of the better defensive backs in the Big Ten over the last couple of seasons.
Heading into the NFL draft, there was a lot of discussion on where DeJean would play in the NFL. Some analysts believed that the former Iowa standout is better off playing safety, while others like him playing in the slot.
When it comes to the Eagles, they’ll likely use DeJean at cornerback since they already have Reed Blankenship and C.J. Gardner-Johnson at safety.
However, it wouldn’t be shocking to see DeJean on the field with Gardner-Johnson and the other defensive backs in certain situations and packages.
After seeing their passing defense decimated by poor play and injuries, Philly is in a great spot heading into the 2024 season. If DeJean can win the starting job out of training camp, it wouldn’t be crazy to think he could hit the over on his regular season interceptions prop (1.5 on DraftKings Sportsbook).
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