Green Bay Packers rookie linebacker Edgerrin Cooper was named the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month for December and January, adding another accolade to his outstanding first NFL season.
Cooper, a second-round pick out of Texas A&M, was the NFC Defensive Player of the Week in Week 8 and the NFC Defensive Player of the Week in Week 15.
Cooper is the first Packers rookie to win NFL Defensive Rookie of the Month since Damarious Randall in November of 2015.
After missing the Packers’ first game in December with a hamstring injury, Cooper finished the final four weeks of the regular season as strongly as any defensive player in football. He produced 35 tackles, eight tackles for loss, 1.0 sack, three quarterback hits, an interception, a pass breakup and a fumble recovery.
Cooper ranked 10th among all players in tackles and first in tackles for loss over the final four weeks.
In Week 15, Cooper had a sack, an interception, two tackles for loss and a pass defensed, helping the Packers beat the Seattle Seahawks 30-13. In Week 16, Cooper produced a career-high four tackles for loss against the Minnesota Vikings. He had a tackle for loss in all four games to end the season.
By overall grade at Pro Football Focus, Cooper led all defensive players in overall grade at 91.4 between Weeks 15-18. He also led all defensive players with 19 stops, or a tackle constituting a failure for the offense.
Cooper and the Packers face Saquon Barkley and the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Wild Card Round on Sunday.