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Spadaro: Darius Cooper is doing it the right way, on and off the field

It was a remarkable grab to give the Eagles a 13-3 lead and then Cooper hauled in a routine touchdown catch (almost in the same spot as the game-winning score at Tennessee) at the end of the first half to push the Eagles ahead, 20-10, heading into halftime.

Not bad for a young player who was a zero-star recruit coming out of high school.

"I've always believed in myself and my talents. I knew I could learn the way to get better," Cooper said. "Nobody was ever going to outwork me and nobody ever will. I don't take any of this for granted. The way the NFL is, they are always going to challenge you. They are always going to try to make your position better."

Cooper isn't your routine second-year player. He is intensely involved in the community – he was the 2025 Eagles Community Offensive Player of the Year for his commitment to supporting charitable initiatives in and around Philadelphia – and he continues to give his time to help others.

On the field, Cooper has earned his playing time and the coaches are feeding him – Cooper played 55 snaps against Los Angeles, 90 percent of the offensive time on the field – and he continues to be a workhorse on special teams where he is second on the team with seven tackles.

"Whatever I can do, I'm going to do," Cooper said. "I just keep my focus on me and what I can do to help the team. Not looking ahead. Just right in front of me. Doing what I need to do every day to play my best football and prepare myself for what my role is going to be.

"You get to the NFL and it's all business. You see all these great players and learn from the way they prepare and perform out there. Then it's a matter of doing it every day. You can't play great one day and then slack off. You have to produce every single day and that's what I'm working toward. Stacking days. I feel good, I feel like I'm ready for any role, and I just keep focused on today and the right way to go about my business."

He's doing just that and giving the Eagles a huge boost. From zero stars out of high school to three touchdowns in the last three NFL games, Cooper is moving in the right direction. And he's doing it the right way – one day at a time.

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