Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio offers explanation for Cooper DeJean’s sudden tackling woes
DeJean has not been fully healthy this season, but the All-Pro DB has made no excuses for his shaky play.
Cooper DeJean has missed a surprising number of tackles this season, leading the league in the dubious category with 12.
In his first two NFL seasons, the 23-year-old Eagles defensive back finished with 11 missed tackles per season — meaning he’s missed more tackles through the first six weeks of 2026 than his season average entering the year.
» READ MORE: Roger Goodell says the NFL welcomes a review of how Eagles handled Jalen Hurts' blood clots
So, what gives? Vic Fangio offered a possible explanation to this surprising trend in his news conference on Wednesday.
“There’s been a few more [missed tackles] than usual,” Fangio said. “He did get that stinger when he had to come out of the Rams game [in Week 4], I believe it was. I think that’s affected him a little bit.”
These struggles come at an unfortunate time for DeJean, who has played both slot corner and safety this season. DeJean and fellow Eagles defensive back Quinyon Mitchell are eligible to sign contract extensions after the 2026 season.
Mitchell, who is one of the best cornerbacks in the league, is in line to earn a massive pay raise. DeJean might need to return to his once-elite form if he wants to improve his chances of reaching the $25-plus million per season range that the best corners and safeties currently make.
While some have been critical of DeJean’s slumping 2026, Fangio offered a different perspective. The veteran defensive coordinator, who isn’t typically quick to dish out praise, said he’s been impressed with DeJean’s play to this point.
“He’s doing good,” Fangio said. “We really haven’t played a ton of base to where he’s playing a lot of safety. But Cooper’s playing good overall.”
DeJean had a particularly rough outing against the Carolina Panthers, when he missed three tackles in the 25-14 loss. Asked about his struggles, DeJean shrugged his shoulders.
“Yeah, I don’t know,” DeJean said after the game. “I just got to find ways to get guys down. Part of it is different angles, where I’m hitting the guys. But I have no doubt that I’m going to continue to work on that and fix that.”
Has the position change — which was implemented this offseason — impacted the former first-team All-Pro at all?
“That’s not really an excuse to use,” DeJean said. “I still got to be able to tackle better and get guys to the ground.”
» READ MORE: Roger Goodell says the NFL welcomes a review of how Eagles handled Jalen Hurts' blood clots
He’s not the only Eagle near the top of the missed tackles leader board.Safety Andrew Mukuba is tied for second in the league with nine missed tackles, while defensive tackle Jalen Carter is tied for fifth with five. Carter has been playing with a hairline fracture in his right wrist suffered in Week 1 against the Washington Commanders.
The secondary’s issues with missed tackles could also be attributed to the unit’s lagging communication at times this season. Even Fangio said Wednesday that there’s no true “general” of the unit quite yet.
“I don’t know that we could say that yet, but Mukuba is progressing nicely,” Fangio said.
The news keeps getting worse. Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts will likely miss the rest of the 2026 season with a deep vein thrombosis blood clot, as well as bilateral pulmonary emboli. Moments after the story broke, The Inquirer’s Jeff McLane and Marcus Hayes reacted to the news, looking at what the diagnosis means for the Super Bowl MVP, how the Eagles handled the situation dating back to their trip to London, and whether backup Tanner McKee is ready to take the helm on a full-time basis. Listen here.
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