Philadelphia Eagles rookie cornerback Cooper DeJean made a game-changing play in Super Bowl LIX with his pick-six of Patrick Mahomes. This remarkable performance has prompted bold praise from NBC color analyst Cris Collinsworth, who recently discussed the Eagles’ 2024 rookie class on Up & Adams with Kay Adams. Collinsworth highlighted DeJean, claiming he could be the biggest steal in the second round of the NFL Draft.
Collinsworth remarked, “The guys that they drafted this year, Quinyon Mitchell has just been a special player on the back end. Cooper DeJean may be the biggest steal in the second round we have seen in a draft. What he has done to shore up the slot position for that team is impressive. They struggled in that area a season ago, but DeJean came in and made a significant impact, alongside players like C.J. Gardner-Johnson—names people wouldn’t typically discuss.”
“Cooper DeJean may be the biggest steal we’ve ever seen in the second round of a draft.”pic.twitter.com/ELpYGZqAfh
— Eliot Clough (@EliotClough) February 12, 2025
Few would argue that DeJean, selected by the Eagles at No. 40 overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, was a steal—possibly even the biggest of his draft class. However, when comparing him to historical second-round steals, DeJean faces stiff competition from Hall of Famers like Brett Favre, Michael Strahan, and Mike Singletary, not to mention future Hall of Famers such as Drew Brees and Rob Gronkowski.
Although DeJean shows tremendous potential to become a great player, it’s tough to even argue that he’s the best second-round pick on his own team, especially with Super Bowl LIX MVP Jalen Hurts also being selected in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Collinsworth likely aimed to emphasize his high regard for DeJean, but such comparisons to legendary players elicited reactions from fans on social media.
Their own quarterback was a second round pick
— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) February 13, 2025
This may be the biggest load of recency bias we’ve ever seen
— d allen (@cycloneD89) February 13, 2025
He’s had one season in the NFL can we relax? He’s been very good but best 2nd round pick ever is a STRETCH
— TD (@tyestakes) February 13, 2025
