Eagles’ Cooper DeJean will forever be remembered for Super Bowl 2025 pick-six – New York Post

NEW ORLEANS — In a complete blowout like what Super Bowl 2025 turned out to be Sunday night at the Superdome, one play never is the difference. But if there was one play that proved to be more stunning and soul-crushing to the two-time defending Super Bowl champion Chiefs in their 40-22 loss to the Eagles, it was made by Cooper DeJean. There wasn’t a play in a game full of them for Philadelphia that buoyed the Eagles more than the 38-yard pick-six by DeJean, their rookie nickelback. DeJean picked off a Patrick Mahomes pass with the Kansas City quarterback having been flushed from the pocket and flustered, and he returned it 38 yards to give the Eagles a 17-0 lead with 7:03 remaining in the first half. The play came in the midst of a series of defensive plays by the Eagles as they completely took the game over. It was Kansas City’s fourth possession of the game, and Mahomes was sacked on the first and second plays of it before he faced a third-and-16 from his own 24. Mahomes forced the pass toward receiver DeAndre Hopkins, whose route DeJean undercut, and the ball landed in DeJean’s arms so easily it looked like he was the intended receiver. “It fell right into my lap,” DeJean said. “I was trying to find the fastest way to the end zone. Luckily, I got some blocks out there. It was our defense working together like we have all year.’’ It was DeJean’s first career interception — regular season or playoffs. After the game, DeJean exchanged a long hug with Eagles receiver A.J. Brown. “He said that they’ve been waiting for me to get my first pick since I got here,” DeJean said. “Now I finally got it in the Super Bowl.” Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio — who entered the game with an 0-8 career record playing against Mahomes — praised his rookie corner afterward. “It was 10-0 at the time and I believe it was anybody’s game,’’ Fangio said. “We were playing a zone and [DeJean] was playing an inside zone. Mahomes was out on kind of a broken play and he just read his eyes, stepped and made a tremendous play. “I had told him that he was going to get his first pick in this game,’’ Fangio added. “So, I was really happy.’’ DeJean’s TD didn’t seal the game, but it came damn close. Follow The Post’s live updates from Super Bowl 2025 for the latest news and highlights.It was a career highlight-reel play for DeJean, a unanimous All-American at Iowa and the No. 40 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. He was as much a steal for the Eagles in that draft as his interception stole the collective soul of the Chiefs. DeJean — whose entrance into the Philadelphia starting lineup came in Week 5, with the Eagles struggling at 2-2 — finished the year allowing only 329 receiving yards and no TDs playing in the slot, according to Pro Football Focus. The Eagles would lose only one more game the rest of the season, and the performances of DeJean and fellow rookie corner Quinyon Mitchell were considered a big reason. “I’ve been dreaming of this since I was a kid, watching this game growing up,’’ DeJean said. “Now it’s here and now I get to wear a big old ring on my finger whenever we get it, to hold that trophy … it’s amazing.” DeJean’s interception was the first pick-six in a Super Bowl since Robert Alford intercepted Tom Brady in the Falcons’ infamously blown 28-3 lead against the Patriots in the 2017 Super Bowl. Much was made about Sunday being the 28th birthday of Eagles running back Saquon Barkley. But it was also DeJean’s 22nd birthday. And he became the first player in NFL history to score a touchdown in the Super Bowl on his birthday. What a gift.Advertisement

Source: https://nypost.com/2025/02/09/sports/cooper-dejean-will-forever-be-remembered-for-pick-six/