Cooper DeJean’s bromance with Reed Blankenship, preparing for Josh Allen, and more ‘Hard Knocks’ highlights
The close-knit Eagles defense, including pals DeJean and Blankenship, frustrated Allen on a victorious holiday week. Here's what else you may have missed from the latest episode of "Hard Knocks."
The latest episode of Hard Knocks featured Christmas presents for the NFC East, with none bigger than the Eagles’ 13-12 win over the Buffalo Bills.
The HBO documentary series, which releases new episodes every Tuesday, took a long look at Cooper DeJean, his relationship with Reed Blankenship, and the Birds’ preparation for their nail-biter win on Sunday.
Here’s everything you may have missed from the latest episode of Hard Knocks:
A Giant pain
Fans in Philadelphia might not be aware of it, but the Giants consider the Eagles their biggest rivals.
During a fan holiday meet-and-greet labeled “Dart the Halls,” rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart was asked by a young fan which team he considers the Giants’ “most rivalrous team.”
“The Eagles, for sure,” Dart responded to a chorus of oohs and ahhs.
The Birds went 1-1 this season against their competition up north and lost at MetLife Stadium for Dart’s first win against an NFC East opponent on Oct. 9. Dart is a candidate for NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, and Eagles fans can expect to see the former Mississippi star for years to come.
Who cares about the Pro Bowl?
Hard Knocks began in a festive mood, showcasing the Giants, Dallas Cowboys, and Washington Commanders exchanging gifts and celebrating Pro Bowl nominations — which the teams had extra time to focus on after being eliminated from postseason contention.
The playoff-bound Eagles, however, weren’t shown celebrating their five Pro Bowlers: DeJean, Quinyon Mitchell, Cam Jurgens, Zack Baun, and Jalen Carter. What was shown was the practice field, with some players congratulating one another in comical fashion.
“Pro Bowler, Cooper DeJawn,” Blankenship said at practice. “Anything you want to say to the people?”
“DeJean … It’s DeJean,” DeJean responded.
The Secon-dairy
DeJean and his partner-in-crime, Blankenship, took center stage in the episode, with their blossoming bromance on and off the field. From ripping the ball away from each other through WWE-style takedowns to practicing dance routines, the Eagles’ defensive stars appeared inseparable.
“He’s an awesome teammate,” DeJean said. “He’s an awesome person to be around. Really welcomed me in and helped me learn the defense when I got here. It’s fun to watch him play and do his thing. I think our connection and our friendship has helped us play well together on the field.”
Said Blankenship: “I’m so proud of him. We sit beside each other in meetings, and I feel like I’m the older brother. There’s not a lot of people like him. He is the best nickel in the league, and just having that communication allows us to play better.”
» READ MORE: The legend of the ‘Exciting Whites’: How Eagles Reed Blankenship and Cooper DeJean formed a bond
The tandem started a podcast called Exciting Mics in June, a reference to the duo’s “Exciting Whites” nickname.
Other nicknames have followed the pair, including “Secon-dairy,” which came after DeJean and Blankenship leaned into a new celebration.
“We do have a milk-the-cow celly,” DeJean admitted.
“We usually do our normal thumbs-down,” Blankenship said. “And I was like, ‘Dude, it’s like udders from a cow …’”
Some observers have confused them for each other on the field — with Fox announcer Kevin Burkhardt and Bills safety Sam Franklin Jr. referring to Blankenship as Coop or DeJean during the game.
“What up, Coop,” Franklin said.
“I’m the other one, bruh,” Blankenship answered.
Getting ready
Eagles coaches took great care in preparing the defense for the Bills offense, with Hard Knocks providing a glimpse into each defensive unit ahead of last Sunday.
Bobby King, the Eagles’ inside linebackers coach, showed sumo wrestling clips to inspire his players to play physically, while Jeremiah Washburn, the inside linebackers and defensive line coach, focused on Bills quarterback Josh Allen’s ability to escape up the middle — something the defense effectively prevented on Sunday.
“Lot of middle escapes,” Washburn said. “And he’s tough. But this is where most of his explosive runs come, is up the middle. It takes a group, fellas. It’s going to take a group because he doesn’t hit the ground easy, and so it’s just going to take a collective effort right there, fellas.
“You can see again,” Washburn added, referring to a clip of Allen throwing on the run. “He’s got an arm, that’s what he does right there.”
Defensive backs coach Christian Parker stressed the Bills’ versatility, with Allen leading the charge through the air and James Cook, the league’s leading rusher, dominating on the ground.
“The key is going to be tackling in space,” Parker said. “Weather could be significant, but we’ve got to take great angles and we’ve got to rally to the football all night long.”
As coaches worked to prepare the team, defensive coordinator Vic Fangio had a different approach to explaining the matchup when addressing the media.
“You got Josh Allen,” Fangio said. “That’s all you need to say. You got Cook, that’s all you need to say. But once he gets in the open field, he’s got the speed to hit the home run. He’s patient, but once he sees it he hits it, and he’s really good, he’s elusive.”
The Eagles held the reigning MVP without a touchdown and Cook to less than 100 rushing yards, and also recovered an Allen fumble and blocked an extra point in the win.
Offensive frustration
You rarely hear Jalen Hurts speak vehemently, so when he does, it means more.
When Hard Knocks featured a quick interaction between the reigning Super Bowl MVP and quarterbacks coach Scot Loeffler, it got viewers’ attention.
“It’s going to rain,” Loeffler said. “Like there’s no if and … it’s going to rain. I don’t give a [expletive] if there’s bad weather or not, we need to get this going.”
“We need to do that [expletive] 1,000%,” Hurts responded.
Hurts, like many fans, seems to have grown frustrated with the production of the offense, which has failed to live up to last year’s standard and leads the league in three-and-out percentage.
Highlight central
The game had plenty of impressive plays, despite its low scoring, starting with A.J. Brown’s deep reception, followed by a Dallas Goedert score a few plays later.
“The night is still young,” Hurts said from the sideline.
“Yes sir,” Goedert responded.
Despite the offense’s confidence, the Eagles failed to notch a touchdown for the rest of the game and were shut out in the second half as punter Braden Mann and the defense did the heavy lifting.
DeJean and Blankenship continued to catch the eye of Hard Knocks cameras and were mic’d up throughout the game.
“We’re a married couple, baby,” Blankenship said of himself and DeJean. “We are in a relationship.”
The Eagles left victorious as Allen walked off the field with his head down following a failed two-point conversion. The episode ended with Nick Sirianni’s postgame speech, which pointed out the offense’s ineptitude.
“Going on the road in the NFL and winning a game like this, that is [expletive] hard to do,” Sirianni said. “It’s a good football team. Defense, wow, wow. Offense, really good first half, right, we’ve got to figure out that second half. A lot to be thankful for. Let’s pray.”
The Eagles have a solid stash of draft picks (8) and, for a team just one season removed from winning the Super Bowl, a lot of positions that need to be addressed. Several elite members of the offensive line could be on the verge of retirement, while the wide receiver corps appears destined to lose a dynamic member. After bolstering the defense in the early rounds of the draft in recent years, will general manager Howie Roseman pivot this spring? The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane and Devin Jackson combine their reporting and analysis to forecast how the Eagles might attack the 2026 NFL Draft, which gets underway Thursday in Pittsburgh. Listen here.
Listen to all episodes here or wherever you get your podcasts.