It took rising Green Bay Packers star Edgerrin Cooper less than 500 snaps to assert himself as the best linebacker in the NFC North.
For our All-NFC North Team, On SI’s four team beat writers ranked the top five linebackers in the division, with No. 1 getting one point, No. 2 getting two points and so on. Cooper received three first-place votes to be the runaway winner.
Here’s the vote: Green Bay’s Edgerrin Cooper, 5 points (three first-place votes, one second-place vote); Minnesota’s Blake Cashman, 13 (one first-place vote, one third-place vote, one fourth-place vote, one fifth-place vote); Detroit’s Alex Anzalone, 14 (one second-place vote, one third-place vote, one fourth-place vote, one fifth-place vote); Chicago’s T.J. Edwards, 14 (one second-place vote, one third-place vote, one fourth-place vote, one fifth-place vote); Detroit’s Jack Campbell (one second-place vote, one third-place vote, one fourth-place vote, one no vote); Minnesota’s Ivan Pace (one fifth-place vote, three no votes).
A training camp injury led the Packers to ease Cooper, a second-round pick and the first linebacker off the board in 2024, into the lineup to start the season. Another injury sidelined him for three games at midseason.
Nonetheless, in 493 snaps over 14 games, Cooper led all NFL rookies and all off-the-ball linebackers with 13 tackles for losses. Cooper played at least 71 percent of the defensive snaps in only two games but still recorded the most TFLs by a rookie off-the-ball linebacker since Lavonte David in 2012.
Cooper earned All-Rookie honors with 77 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 13 tackles for losses, four passes defensed, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries. That’s with 45.1 percent playing time. Double that to 90 percent playing time, and the numbers might have been staggering.
Cooper was the only player in the NFL last season with at least 75 tackles, 13 TFLs, three sacks, one interception, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. Plus, he became the first player since 2000 with at least 13 TFLs and 10 tackles on special teams.
Cooper has elite speed and a nose for the ball. The expectation is a year of experience and offseason strength training will make him even more impactful.
“I feel like for every rookie, it’s kind of tough coming in,” Cooper said during OTAs. “I felt as the season went along, I was still picking up on things, learning how things go. And at the end of the season, I got pretty dialed in. Right now, I know what it’s all about and how to play well and do all the little things right.”
If Cooper stays healthy and former first-round pick Quay Walker plays like he did down the stretch before a late-season injury, Green Bay could have a formidable pair of every-down linebackers.
Cashman joins Cooper with the No. 1 defense. After starting 21 games in five seasons, Cashman started all 14 appearances in Year 1 with the Vikings. He recorded 112 tackles, 4.5 sacks, eight quarterback hits and eight passes defensed.
Said Vikings On SI’s Joe Nelson: “When he missed two games in a four-day span early in the season the Vikings were gouged over the middle of the field in losses to the Lions and Rams. His impact cannot be understated, and he will again be the lynchpin on defense.”
Anzalone and Edwards, the former Wisconsin star, were one point behind Cashman.
Anzalone missed seven games with a broken arm. After back-to-back seasons of 125 tackles, Anzalone slipped to 63 tackles but tied his career high with seven TFLs in 10 games.
Edwards, who has started all 17 games three consecutive seasons, had 129 tackles and set career highs with four sacks and 12 tackles for losses.
“Edwards is not known for his speed and this could lead to questions about his fit in Dennis Allen’s defense, one reliant on man-to-man coverage and blitzers more than Matt Eberflus’ zone-heavy approach,” Bears On SI’s Gene Chamberlain said. “However, Edwards has shown he can adjust and is effective blitzing.”
More must-reads:
Get the latest news and rumors, customized to your favorite sports and teams. Emailed daily. Always free!