Eagles Rookie Report Card: Cooper DeJean shines in the Super Bowl

The Eagles are Super Bowl Champions! That is of the most utmost importance. What a magical, exciting, surprising season that ended with one of the more dominant postseason runs in recent memory. Rookies were integral to the Eagles Super Bowl run in a way those kind of young players haven’t contributed in a long time. Here is a final rookie report card for the Eagles 2024 NFL Draft Class!

Quinyon Mitchell: A+

The Eagles defense was absolutely horrendous last year, so Howie Roseman went out and hired Vic Fangio before drafting Quinyon Mitchell with Philly’s first-round pick. The rest is history. Mitchell was immediately one of the more dominant outside cornerbacks in the league. His athleticism, instincts, and pro-ready technique instantly made him an asset to what eventually became the best defense in the league. In the playoffs, Quinyon Mitchell nabbed hist first and second career interceptions. In four postseason games, he allowed a QB Rating of 33.8 into his coverage. Special, special player.

Cooper DeJean: A+

Cooper DeJean will be synonymous with the Eagles’ turnaround in 2024. The team felt doomed at 2-2 through the first month of the season. They had a bye week, DeJean was named the starting nickel cornerback and the team went on a 16-1 run to win the Super Bowl. DeJean was a force in the slot for the Eagles defense. Despite being targeted a ton, DeJean never allowed a touchdown in the regular season. He played like a third linebacker against the run, playing physically and with great awareness to make stops at and near the line. DeJean’s season was capped off in an unmatchable and magical way. On his 22nd (!!!) birthday, in the Super Bowl, DeJean picked off Patrick Mahomes for a touchdown and all but signaled that the rout was on. The combination of Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean will be deadly for the Eagles defense for many years.

Jalyx Hunt: B

Jalyx Hunt was drafted as a project edge defender. I don’t think the staff anticipated how reliant on him they’d become. Midway through the season, the Eagles were down Brandon Graham and Bryce Huff to injury. Hunt was thrust into duty and immediately played some really solid football. Once a week, he complement competent play with one or two flash moments where you saw how special he could be. His burst and bend around the edge are rare traits that could make him a dominant player in the future. Every week he played, we got a glimpse. His regular season stats were solid, with two sacks and seven hurries on 245 defensive snaps. In the postseason, he really started to get comfy and playing very well. He contributed to a dominant defensive line performance in the Super Bowl, chipping in four hurries and a sack on Mahomes. Hunt is an immensely talented player, and the staff will go into the offseason seeing him as a candidate to take on a much bigger role next year.

The Rest

• Will Shipley barely got much run as RB3 in a Saquon Barkley-reliant offense. He had a great garbage time burst against Washington in the NFCC. With Kenneth Gainwell set for free agency, Shipley will contend for the RB2 spot in the summer.
• Ainias Smith didn’t see the field much as the WR5. The Eagles got him in on some gimmicky plays but otherwise he didn’t do much. Smith will need to push for snaps as a kick returner to make the roster next year.
• Jeremiah Trotter Junior had the misfortune of playing behind Nakobe Dean, Zach Baun and Oren Burks. He barely saw the field on defense. In the rare moments the Eagles did get him out there, he looked good! It will be interesting to see how the team values him going into his sophomore season.
• Trevor Keegan didn’t see the field outside of the Week 18 regular season finale when starters were resting. The Eagles’ talent along the offensive line kept him low on the depth chart.
• Johnny Wilson actually had a relatively big role in his rookie year considering his draft position. Wilson was used as a run blocker at wide receiver and even caught a touchdown! The WR4 spot is going to be wide open this summer and I expect Wilson to push for it.