Video: Why Iowa CB Cooper DeJean makes sense for the Lions

We have a roundtable NFL Draft discussion about why Iowa CB Cooper DeJean makes sense for the Lions.

The discourse surrounding Iowa cornerback Cooper DeJean ahead of the 2024 NFL draft in Detroit has been fascinating, and to some extent—very unique. Erik Schlitt, managing editor of Pride of Detroit as well as the co-host of the Detroit Lions Breakdown Podcast, joined myself and Meko Scott to discuss whether or not DeJean would make sense for the Detroit Lions.

On one hand, DeJean has more or less cemented his status as a top prospect over the course of the last several weeks. He put up really strong numbers at this year’s NFL Combine in Indianapolis, and went off at his own Pro Day in Iowa.

Furthermore, the tape is there for DeJean. Iowa’s defense relies on a lot of zone coverage to slow opponents down, so a lot of DeJean’s production has come with him playing off the receiver and covering a deep-third of the field. However, as Erik mentions in the video, DeJean could project as a player that can do much more than be a solid outside cornerback in a cover-three heavy scheme.

Outside of the discussion we had around DeJean and his possible fit within defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn’s defense, we touch on why other cornerbacks in this year’s class are being valued above DeJean, as well as the question of whether or not Alabama cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry’s stock should be rising ahead of next week’s draft.

It was really fun having Erik on the Pride of Detroit YouTube channel, and hopefully we can get him back after the draft to breakdown the Lions’ draft class and how they fit into the roster.