When the Philadelphia Eagles said goodbye to Darius Slay before free agency, allowing the Super Bowl Champion to sign with their cross-state rivals, the Pittsburgh Steelers, it created a major hole opposite Quinyon Mitchell at outside cornerback.

Sure, the team already had Kelee Ringo, added another cornerback in the 2025 NFL Draft in Mac McWilliams, and also drafted Andrew Mukuba, who can kick it inside to slot cornerback if need be. But what Howie Roseman didn't do was add a pure outside cornerback capable of locking down opposing wide receivers on the perimeter.

Part of that might be because Vic Fangio already believes he has his new outside guy, at least on base downs, in Cooper DeJean, who was a revelation in the slot last season. Discussing his potential position change and how the transition has been so far, DeJean noted it's a pretty big difference, but he's open to the challenge.

“Yeah, they're both a little different. I did a little bit of both in college, but they're different. And on the inside, you gotta prepare more to hit the run and be able to cover and do all those things,” DeJean explained.

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“In the corner, it's more worrying about covering the top guy, top receiver with a lot of space. I did a little bit in college, so I've been doing it a little bit early on today. So, yeah, I think just doing whatever, wherever they need to be. That's what I'll do, try outside and inside. But it's definitely a tough task, yeah, no doubt.”

Last fall, DeJean turned in one of the best slot cornerback seasons Eagles fans have seen in years, looking like a certified Pro Bowler in a hybrid role that required attacking the run on one play, dropping into zone coverage on the next, and then manning up anyone from a wide receiver, to a tight end, or even a running back on the play after that, given he played 63 percent of the team's defensive snaps.

While moving to outside cornerback will certainly streamline DeJean's responsibilities on base downs, it could also limit how much he can impact the game on any given down, especially if the ball isn't thrown his way. Then again, if DeJean is the best man for the job, and clearly outperforms McWilliams, Ringo, and Eli Ricks, what are the Eagles to do but give him the nod and hope he can play to the level of Slay last fall?