Packers GM Brian Gutekunst Calls Cooper DeJean ‘Versatile’

With the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft just three days away, Green Bay Packers GM Brian Gutekunst surprisingly answered a question about Iowa star Cooper DeJean.

Author:
Bill Huber
Apr 22, 2024

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NFL Draft

Cooper DeJean

Green Bay Packers

Brian Gutekunst

Packers Draft

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers enter the 2024 NFL Draft with needs at safety and cornerback, where there are no clear-cut starters opposite the team’s prized free-agent addition, safety Xavier McKinney, and its former All-Pro cornerback, Jaire Alexander.

Can Iowa Hawkeyes star Cooper DeJean fill one of those voids?

“I think he can do both. I think he’s very versatile that way,” general manager Brian Gutekunst told reporters at Lambeau Field on Monday, three days before the first round begins on Thursday night. Back in the day, the late Ted Thompson never would have answered that question. Gutekunst did, which either means he’s a player of interest or a player of no interest.

“I think he’s obviously a very good athlete,” Gutekunst continued. “His ability to take the ball away is very impressive. Obviously, he’s got some (special) teams ability, as well. He’s a very well-rounded player. I think he can do either. I think it’s really going to come down to where you may need him.”

DeJean played almost exclusively cornerback at Iowa, where he intercepted five passes in 2022, with three returned for touchdowns, and two passes in 2023, when he was named the Big Ten’s Defensive Player of the Year. He returned a punt for a touchdown, as well, in 2023, when he was named the Big Ten’s Returner of the Year.

The Packers could use him at cornerback, where Eric Stokes has been sidelined for most of the past season-and-a-half, and Carrington Valentine played with predictable inconsistency as a seventh-round rookie.

Will offseason testing and a new training staff get Stokes’ career back on track? Will Valentine play with more consistency and take that cliched Year 2 jump?

The Packers also could use him at safety. Other than McKinney, the only safety on the roster who played more than a few defensive snaps last year was seventh-round rookie Anthony Johnson.

However, DeJean didn’t play much safety at Iowa. That’s a difficult transition for any player, let alone one who has to adjust to life as a professional.

“I believe I can play corner. I feel like with my ability, I can do that – speed- and size-wise,” he said at pro day. “But I feel like I also have the athleticism to play multiple positions. At the end of the day, it’s just about playing football. You find the ball, stop the other team from scoring.”

He added: “There’s been a few teams that have [me at cornerback],” he said. “And then there’s been a few teams who see me other places. Most teams think I can play multiple positions, which is to my benefit.”

The question is whether DeJean will be on the board to be considered.

The Packers own the 25th pick. In his final draft rankings, NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah listed DeJean at No. 24 overall.

“DeJean is a playmaking cornerback with size and speed,” Jeremiah wrote. “Overall, I believe DeJean could stick at cornerback, but I wouldn't rule out a move to safety, where his strengths as a player would be featured.”

The betting over/under for DeJean’s draft slot at DraftKings is 22.5.

DeJean is tied for the sixth-shortest odds for Defensive Rookie of the Year at FanDuel Sportsbook at +1600.