Darius Cooper Is Pushing For An Eagles Role Nobody Expected

A standout at training camp, Darius Cooper is quickly rising through the Eagles' ranks with the potential to secure a crucial starting position in Week 1.

Darius Cooper has gone from roster afterthought to a name that’s suddenly getting real Week 1 buzz in Philadelphia.

That’s the takeaway from PHLY’s Bo Wulf, who said Cooper has been the Eagles’ most consistent receiver throughout training camp and could be looking at a major role when the season opens.

“The conversation has changed. You know, last week it was, ‘OK, Darius Cooper is on this team?’

He's going to make this team. Darius Cooper has been the best receiver on the team over the course of training camp,” Wulf said.

He didn’t stop there. Wulf pointed to the uncertainty around several other receivers and said Cooper has separated himself by stacking productive days with Jalen Hurts.

“Obviously, he's not a better player than DeVonta Smith, but DeVonta has not been healthy. Dontayvion Wicks has been pretty good, but Dontayvion Wicks has… There have been peaks and valleys.

Darius Cooper has, every single day, made plays with Jalen Hurts as the quarterback. Makai Lemon is not healthy right now.

You don't know what his role is going to be. There is a real chance that Darius Cooper is playing 80% of the snaps Week 1.”

Cooper arrived in Philadelphia as an undrafted free agent out of Tarleton State and still made the roster as a rookie. But his first season on offense was mostly quiet, with only 11 targets across 212 snaps.

Now, he’s making a much louder case. Much like Willie Lampkin, who has thrived in his second season in Philly as a UDFA, Cooper is putting together the kind of camp that can force a team to rethink the depth chart.

If Smith and Lemon stay limited through August, Wulf’s projection could end up sounding less bold and more like the start of one of the Eagles’ best underdog stories.

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