Edgerrin Cooper looks like the exact chess piece the Packers need to follow where defenses are headed across the NFL
Linebacker made the All-Rookie Team last season
A sack amongst three pressures, an interception, a pass breakup. Everything in one game. It was a Week 15 primetime game against the Seattle Seahawks, and rookie linebacker Edgerrin Cooper had his first monster performance in the NFL. Yes, the second-rounder had already shown signs of his ability, but that matchup put Cooper in a different place. Not only had the Green Bay Packers found a special player, but they have the perfect piece for the modern NFL.
He is an off-ball linebacker, but he can be much more. And Jeff Hafley is the ideal defensive coordinator to maximize his talents and avoid his weaknesses. Entering his second year, the Packers have something special brewing, and the All-Rookie Team player can make a leap to stardom.
Versatility to create confusion
When Matt LaFleur was hired, he brought to Green Bay a premise that Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay preaches: The illusion of complexity. On offense, that’s what the Packers have been since 2019. On defense, it hadn’t been the case until Hafley arrived last offseason. With him, Green Bay was much more schematically adaptable, and it allowed them to overcome secondary injuries throughout the season.
The Packers still have problems in the cornerback room, there haven’t been major additions to the pass rush, so creativity will still be a big part of the path for success. Edgerrin Cooper might be the answer to put everything together.
“I see Hafley utilizing Cooper to create five-man fronts and attack the edges,” said Cody Alexander, analyst for Match Quarters. “Plus, it creates different looks that offenses now have to handle.”
Alexander compared Cooper’s possible role in Green Bay to what Frankie Luvu has on the Washington Commanders, or even what Zack Baun did as a breakout player for the Philadelphia Eagles transitioning from edge to a hybrid player, but mostly an off-ball backer. In 2024, Luvu had 720 snaps in the box and 288 at the line of scrimmage. Baun had 649 in the box and 127 at the line. The proportion wasn’t that different for Cooper, who played 394 snaps in the box and 38 at the defensive line for the Packers as a rookie.
The ability to blitz and create havoc was Cooper’s most impressive trait, and it allowed Hafley to protect him while he developed other areas of his game.
Even playing a limited number of snaps, Cooper generated 11 pressures, had 3.5 sacks, and a 14.9% pass rush win rate, via PFF. His 92.7 PFF pass rush grade was the best amongst Packers defensive front players.
“Now, it’s getting the details down,” Hafley said during the offseason about his expectations for Cooper. “Now, it’s lining up exactly where he needs to line up and doing it over and over and over again, because then he’s gonna show up faster and he’s going to make more plays and he’s going to become a more consistent player.”
Run pressure
A trend around the NFL, and one that might just be more evident in 2025, is defensive coaches utilizing run pressure packages to affect the offense more on early downs. Historically, defenses would be conservative on first and second downs to be protected, then bring more exotic pressures on obvious passing plays.
That logic has changed, driven by Kansas City Chiefs’ Steve Spagnuolo and Minnesota Vikings’ Brian Flores. With run pressures, the defense can force negative plays for the offense and put it in unfavorable situations more consistently.
“It goes back to the different looks,” Cody Alexander mentioned. “He can attack from an off-ball alignment to create run-throughs and cut-offs inside, or you can line him up outside to affect the playaction and boot schemes, or have him run down running backs. Again, changing structure.”
Edgerrin Cooper had a promising rookie year as a part-time player. Now he’s a full-time starter, and he can effectively lead and drive how the Packers will play defense in 2025 and beyond.
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