Entering the 2023 season, there was some real media buzz about Iowa defensive back Cooper DeJean. He was coming off a monster 2022 season with 75 tackles, five interceptions, 13 passes broken up and three touchdowns. DeJean recorded 41 tackles, two interceptions and five passes broken up in 2023 before a lower leg injury cost him the final two games of the year.
DeJean became an after-thought thanks to other defensive backs like Alabama’s Terrion Arnold, Toledo’s Quinyon Mitchell and Clemson’s Nate Wiggins receiving more media attention. However, that could change very quickly. Sources from NFL multiple teams said they expect DeJean to be a star of the pre-draft workouts once he is healthy. They said they believe that if DeJean aces the process like they think he will, he could rise into being a top-20 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
The 6-foot-1, 207-pound DeJean has good size, and some team sources said they have heard he will run extremely fast in the 40-yard dash, to the tune of potentially putting up low 4.4s or in the 4.3s, potentially at his pro day or other workouts. They shared they believe that DeJean will team interviews as well.
“He feels more of a back-of-the-first right now,” said an NFC director of college scouting. “But he’s in the mix to go top 20 because he’s going to run fast, test well, and his character reads good.”
Sources said the Iowa staff rave about DeJean. The staff was talking up DeJean last year as being the program’s best NFL prospect, and that was with multiple Hawkeyes being selected in the 2023 NFL Draft : Sam LaPorta – Round 2 -, Jack Campbell – Round 1 – and Riley Moss – Round 3.
Right now, I have DeJean going to the Los Angeles Rams with the 19th pick in my latest 2024 NFL Mock Draft and I have DeJean at No. 19 overall on my latest 2024 NFL Draft Big Board . With the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine just days away, DeJean could start skyrocketing up boards as teams expect him to be a star of the combine interviews and in the workouts later in the pre-draft process.
