On Tuesday, August 26, 2025, the Philadelphia Eagles finalized their 53-man roster ahead of the National Football League’s cutdown deadline at 4 p.m. ET. Darius Cooper, an undrafted wide receiver from Tarleton State, was called into a meeting at the NovaCare Complex with head coach Nick Sirianni and executive vice president/general manager Howie Roseman. Cooper said, “I had peace about it,” when asked how he felt before the meeting. After answering questions from Sirianni and Roseman, he was told he had made the roster. “They called me up and (we) had a great conversation,” Cooper said. “I was very happy, very excited, very grateful to have this opportunity to play for this organization.”
Cooper became the only undrafted free agent to make Philadelphia’s initial 53-man roster. His path began as a zero-star recruit. At Tarleton State, he played sparingly in his first two seasons. In 2022, he recorded 1,063 receiving yards and nine touchdowns in 11 games. In 2023, he added 622 yards in seven games. In 2024, he led all wide receivers in college football with 1,450 yards in 14 games, finishing with 76 catches and 14 touchdowns. Despite those numbers, he was not invited to the NFL Combine or the Senior Bowl, and he went undrafted.
Roseman explained how the Eagles identified him, “We give our area scouts a chance to put their names on free agents and go get those guys and our area guys did a great job. (Southwest Area Scout) Cam (Bradfield) did an unbelievable job. I think (Director of Player Personnel) Phil (Bhaya) was a big part of that too.” Roseman added, “You just watch him, and you see obviously he’s not playing in the SEC, but you see that he’s got talent. When he came in here just seeing how big and strong he is, I mean, we sat with him today and he’s sitting there in shorts and a t-shirt and you’re looking at him and you’re going, ‘this guy has so much developmental qualities for us,’ and what a great kid.”
In Philadelphia, Cooper climbed the depth chart during the offseason and preseason. On August 7, 2025, in his debut against the Cincinnati Bengals at Lincoln Financial Field, he recorded six catches for 82 yards and one touchdown. He added one more catch for eight yards in the preseason finale. After that first game, Cooper said, “I always knew I belonged.”
Sirianni described Cooper’s abilities, “As far as his potential, one thing I think about him is he has this ability. Not everybody has an ability to win 1-on-1, and I think he’s shown that through camp that he has tools in his body to be able to win. He’s big, he’s strong, he’s quick. My take on receivers always is the best guys have good body quickness and good play strength, and he has those things. The other thing I think is he’s tough, right? Because we know we’re going to try to get the ball to A.J. (Brown), we’re going to try to get the ball to DeVonta (Smith), we’re going to try to get the ball to Dallas (Goedert), we’re going to try to get the ball to Saquon (Barkley) in the passing game. And so, some guys have to come up a different way. They have to come up with doing some of the dirty work.”
Sirianni also said, “I think that this guy is a really strong football player who can do some of the dirty work stuff for us as far as our blocking, as far as special teams, as far as good speed to be able to clear things out. And really when you have a guy like that, there’s opportunities for him as well in the pass game that mesh off of some of those things. I’m looking forward to watching him continue to develop.”
Roseman commented on the roster decision, saying, “Obviously, it starts now. We tell all these guys, there’s no scholarships in the NFL, they got to keep earning it. But he’s done everything up to this point to earn the opportunity.”
The Eagles’ wide receiver group after the cutdown included A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Jahan Dotson, John Metchie III, and Darius Cooper. Rookie Johnny Wilson suffered season-ending knee and ankle injuries. Cooper’s addition meant he beat out 2024 fifth-round pick Ainias Smith.
His arrival also comes at a time when Philadelphia remains one of the NFL’s most closely watched teams in betting markets. Entering Week 1, the Eagles are a touchdown favorite at home against the Dallas Cowboys, with sportsbooks listing them between -6.5 and -7 and totals hovering at 46 to 46.5. Moneylines generally sit around -295 to -310 for Philadelphia and +240 to +250 for Dallas. Those numbers have held steady since opening in May, when FanDuel first posted -6.5 and DraftKings quickly went to -7 with a 46.5 total.
Futures prices have inched slightly since the offseason, shifting from +650 to +700 or even +750 to win the Super Bowl, while division odds sit in the -135 to -160 range and the team’s win total remains at 11.5, shaded to the Under. Market attention has also focused on roster changes, including the loss of rookie Johnny Wilson to season-ending knee and ankle injuries and the addition of John Metchie III, as well as the rise of Cooper, who joined A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Jahan Dotson, and Metchie in a deep receiver group.
Analysts have pointed out that these developments influence betting derivatives like player props and team totals more than spreads, and early action has leaned to Philadelphia, with reports showing a majority of money backing the Eagles in the opener.
Fans reacted on social media after Cooper’s roster spot was announced. Posts included, “Darius Cooper What a story man. No Combine. No Senior Bowl. No one knew about him. Small school kid. A Howie 💎,” and “Darius Cooper making the Eagles roster is one of the coolest stories in the entire NFL. Excited to see what he can bring this season.” Another user wrote, “So pumped for Darius Cooper. Came in undrafted and proved he deserved a roster spot.”
Darius Cooper making the Eagles roster is one of the coolest stories in the entire NFL.
Excited to see what he can bring this season.
— RB (@RBPhillyTake) August 26, 2025
Darius Cooper What a story man
No Combine
No Senior Bowl
No one knew about him.
Small school kidA Howie 💎
— Anthony Pasillas (@Anthony17972301) August 26, 2025
So pumped for Darius Cooper. Came in undrafted and proved he deserved a roster spot https://t.co/ZAA4EdPh88
— Mike Rotolo (@MikeRotolo35) August 26, 2025
Cooper described the achievement as “definitely the start of the journey,” adding, “I know God has something big planned for me, for my family, for this organization, and I’m just excited to ride along.” He also said, “Definitely grateful. Definitely appreciate the journey. But we’re going to keep moving forward.”
