Young linebacker tops list of players Packers need more from moving forward 1 Green Bay Packers defensive end Edgerrin Cooper (56) is shown is shown before organized team activities Wednesday, May 29, 2024 in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

The key to Packers’ Edgerrin Cooper turning season around

Originally posted on WI Sports Heroics | By Matt Lombardo | Last updated Oct 8, 2025 1:52 PM ET

Packers linebacker Edgerrin Cooper was among the most dominant players at his position as a rookie, but his sophomore season has gotten off to a bit of an uninspiring start.

While Cooper has posted 33 total tackles with half a sack through the season’s first four games, the expectation was that after earning All-Pro votes as a rookie he’d make major strides towards reaching that recognition in 2025. So far, that hasn’t happened.

How Packers linebacker Edgerrin Cooper ups his game from here

Over at ESPN, Seth Walder revisted a preseason prediction he made that Cooper would make the All-Pro team in 2025.

Walder strikes an optimistic tone that Cooper can still have the kind of season that merits All-Pro recognition.

“He has posted solid numbers,” Walder writes for ESPN. “But not quite like what he did in a semi-small sample last season. His 37% run stop win rate is a bit above average for an off-ball linebacker but nowhere near his 46% from a year ago. Cooper’s 0.9 yards per coverage snap is average for a linebacker, and his 0.5 sacks is nothing to write home about. But it’s a long season, and he’s a promising young player. There’s still time.”

Cooper may not be matching last season’s pace just yet, but if he can rediscover his explosiveness against the run and consistency in coverage, there’s still plenty of time for him to remind the league why he looked like a future star as a rookie.

Playing in a front-seven that also includes Micah Parsons is going to help create opportunities for Cooper, as well, especially as the All-Pro edge rusher continues to round into form and get healthier after dealing with a back injury this summer and early this season.

Cooper’s flashes are still there. And, if Cooper can string them together over the second half of the season, the All-Pro buzz that surrounded him a year ago could resurface in a hurry.

Packers' Edgerrin Cooper is off to insane start to 2025 NFL season 2 Sep 22, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Green Bay Packers linebacker Edgerrin Cooper (56) sneaks a peak into the backfield against the Tennessee Titans during the first half at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

This article first appeared on WI Sports Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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