Cooper DeJean fans celebrate with newest Philly icon
Life has changed just a bit for DeJean, whose iconic interception return for a touchdown in Super Bowl LIX helped deliver to the city another championship.
Cooper DeJean trotted out to the football field at the Haverford School for his youth camp on a recent Saturday afternoon, sporting a brand-new accessory, fit for a Super Bowl champion.
About 8 a.m. that morning at the starting line for the Eagles Autism Challenge 10-mile bike race, 10-year-old Chloe Marinzoli of West Chester passed DeJean a friendship bracelet that she crafted with the 22-year-old cornerback in mind. The message in gold letters on the beaded bracelet — IN MY PICK6 ERA — elicited a smile from DeJean.
The gift paid homage, of course, to DeJean’s second-quarter interception of Patrick Mahomes in the Super Bowl that he returned 38 yards for a touchdown. The pick, which was the first of his NFL career, and the subsequent score gave the Eagles a dominant 17-0 lead over the Kansas City Chiefs.
“I was really surprised, but I was really happy for Cooper, ‘cause it was his birthday and he was just a rookie at the time,” Marinzoli said. “So that was really great for him.”
Three months after the Eagles hoisted the Lombardi Trophy in part thanks to DeJean’s efforts, the cornerback is celebrated as if he’s still in his so-called pick-six era. From the Eagles Autism Challenge that Saturday morning to his youth camp that afternoon to his evening autograph signing at Checkers in the Northeast, children and adults alike clamored to recognize DeJean for his contribution to the franchise’s second Super Bowl win.
Before the start of the 30-mile bike ride at 7 a.m., DeJean greeted participants, stopping to sign a photo of the pick-six for 57-year-old Scot Rainear of Somers Point, N.J.
“Welcome to Philadelphia,” he told DeJean. “Great first season.”
Another cyclist wished DeJean a happy birthday, three months belated.
Later that afternoon, 8-year-old Ryan Orange of Cinnaminson finished a tackling drill at DeJean’s camp, then approached the onlooking cornerback.
“How did it feel when you picked-sixed Patrick Mahomes?” he asked.
“Crazy,” DeJean responded.
Devin Roberts, 13, and Nykwan Jordan, 14, of Philadelphia eagerly clutched the signed photos of DeJean running into the Caesars Superdome end zone that he distributed to each camp attendee.
Even Roberts, a Dallas Cowboys fan, could appreciate DeJean’s feat while watching the Super Bowl at his aunt’s house.
“I’m surrounded by all Eagles fans, so they’re screaming,” Roberts recalled. “I sat there and I was like, ‘I should scream, too, ‘cause Cooper DeJean, he just caught a pick and sixed it.’ So it made me like him better.”
Jacqueline and Elle Gardner, who are both 20, listened back to Kevin Burkhardt’s call of the pick-six on their drive to the Checkers on Roosevelt Boulevard from South Philly.
“We were like, ‘Coop! Is! In!’” Jacqueline exclaimed, mimicking Burkhardt’s staccato inflections.
That play is forever etched in the memories of the Eagles fans who witnessed it. Christan Glennon, an Abington woman who turned 44 on the day of the Super Bowl, called it the “absolute best birthday I ever had.” Joe Lawless said his son, Jesse, nearly broke their front door as he ran around the house in celebration.
“It was worth it,” Lawless said.
In the aftermath of the pick-six, Joe Muhlberger of Mount Laurel said he bought himself and his 11-year-old son, Matthew, matching DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell jerseys embroidered with Super Bowl LIX patches to honor the rookies who “fit in perfectly to the team.” Joseph Kroszner from Perkasie also snagged a No. 33 jersey with a Super Bowl patch.
“I was waiting for that moment and I knew it was coming the entire year,” Kroszner, 24, said.
That moment, DeJean said, changed his life “a little bit.”
“But I’m still the same old me,” he continued.
DeJean hasn’t lost sight of his roots. As a budding athlete from Odebolt, Iowa, which boasts a population of less than 1,000, DeJean didn’t have many opportunities to interact with the pros.
Creating those moments for his youngest fans to learn from an NFL player at his youth camp fulfilled a desire that DeJean couldn’t attain at their age.
“To be able to go to a camp and interact with someone who plays at the highest level in the NFL,” DeJean said. “So I’m just happy I’m able to do it. Bring the kids out and have some fun.”
The kids didn’t take the opportunity for granted. Eleven-year-old Katelin Cunningham and her mother, Kristen, made the hourlong trek to the camp from Allentown. Katelin just finished her first season playing flag football. A defensive back and running back, she looks up to DeJean for his defensive prowess at such a young age.
“The fact that he’s just young, up-and-coming, and an exciting player,” Kristen explained.
At the campers’ age, though, DeJean wasn’t solely fixated on football. He played a plethora of sports aside from football, including basketball, track, and baseball. Only when DeJean embarked upon his college career at Iowa did he commit to football full-time.
Glennon’s 9-year-old son, Mick, can relate to a young DeJean. Her son and his friend, Gavin Donahue, dabble in numerous sports. Gavin’s mother, Deb, said the variety makes both children more well-rounded.
“They just came from their baseball game right now for Glenside, so they both all play a lot of sports, too,” Glennon said, “And I think the fact that he played like four sports and excelled in four sports gives them a lot of motivation to … it doesn’t have to just be about football. It can be about a whole lot of other fun sports.”
But Saturday afternoon was about football. DeJean motivated the children with fist bumps and words of encouragement as they progressed through the drills. He even jumped into some of the activities, channeling his inner high school quarterback by slinging passes into the end zone.
DeJean also challenged a handful of campers to cornerback-receiver one-on-ones. Twelve-year-old Eden Cottrell, who hails from West Philadelphia, used a jab step to create separation from the Eagles’ starting nickel cornerback.
Cottrell hauled in a touchdown pass. DeJean commended him on his route. Even though Cottrell said he could have done better, he appreciated DeJean’s compliment.
“It was exciting,” Cottrell said. “It was one of my first times meeting an NFL player.”
After a whirlwind rookie season, DeJean is striving to accomplish even more in 2025. Since winning the Super Bowl, DeJean said he has had the opportunity to travel, meet new people, and “do a lot of cool things.” Now, he insisted, it’s time to get back to work.
I’m still young and I’ve still got a lot more that I want to accomplish.”
“The Super Bowl was nice. But at some point you’ve got to move on and try to top that and do it again,” DeJean said. “Continue to be better as a player on the field and off the field. And try to grow into more of a leadership role this year and help these young guys, like the older guys helped me.”
The next phase of the offseason program begins this week, when the Eagles hold their first voluntary organized team activities. Soon enough, DeJean will have the opportunity to step into a leadership role among a young defense, making an effort to compensate for the departures of veteran defensive backs such as Darius Slay, C.J. Gardner-Johnson, James Bradberry, and Avonte Maddox.
Until then, DeJean is inspiring a different set of youngsters. In their eyes, his pick-six era may never end.
“I want to be just like him,” Cottrell said.