Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur believes rookie linebacker Edgerrin Cooper could become a superstar in the NFL after his highly impactful rookie season.
“I think he’s got superstar potential, I really do,” LaFleur told Matt Schneidman of The Athletic on the season-ending episode of the “Matt LaFleur Podcast.”
Cooper produced 13 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, two fumble recoveries, an interception, four pass breakups, one forced fumble and seven quarterback hits. He finished second among off-ball linebackers in tackle for loss and first among rookie defenders in stops, a tackle PFF views as a failure for the offense. By overall PFF grade, Cooper trailed only Xavier McKinney among Packers defensive players and only Jared Verse among NFL rookies.
With continued development over his second offseason, Cooper could ascend into an elite tier of playmaking linebackers in the NFL starting as soon as 2025.
“As long as he continues to work, which I know he will,” LaFleur said. “I think (linebackers coach Anthony) Campanile does a great job of grinding those guys. It was a huge learning curve coming from Texas A&M to here. And you saw, the more he played, the better he got, and the more consistent he got. It’s going to be a great offseason for him. I think he’s planning on staying in town. Hopefully we can get him bigger, faster and stronger.”
Cooper’s star potential was on full display over the final four weeks of the regular season. He produced an NFL-high eight tackles for loss and was named the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Month for December/January. By PFF grade, he was the NFL’s top rated defensive player overall between Weeks 15-18.
Cooper has all the attributes of a star linebacker in today’s NFL. He can run, hit and blitz. He triggers fast downhill. He can make disruptive plays in coverage. He finds a way to the football and can be an impressive tackler, especially in space. Consistency was an issue at times, but it is for almost every first-year player in the NFL.
Cooper set the bar high as a rookie. Add more consistency to his disruptive abilities and becoming a star is certainly possible.
