Darius Cooper: 2025 NFL draft scouting report

BY GAVIN PATRICK

Sports Editor

Tarleton State wide receiver Darius Cooper was one of the top players in the FCS in 2024. He had 76 catches and 14 touchdowns last season, and his 1,450 receiving yards were second across all of Division I.

But how does Cooper stack up with other wide receivers in the 2025 class? Where does he excel, and where does he still need work? Will teams overlook him as a product of a lower division?

With the NFL draft on Thursday, it’s time to answer those burning questions. Let’s take a closer look at one of the few NFL hopefuls to ever bear the purple and white.

(See Cooper’s bio and game log from the 2024 season)

By the numbers

- Height: 6’0”

- Weight: 190 pounds

- 40-Yard Dash: 4.49

- Vertical Jump: 38”

- Bench Press: 18 reps

- Broad Jump: 10’6”

- 3 Cone Drill: 7.11

- 20-Yard Shuttle: 4.23

- Career stats: (48 games played): 164 catches, 3,185 receiving yards, 29 touchdowns

Prospect overview

NFL.com: A compact, physical target, it would make the most sense to utilize Cooper as a big slot receiver instead of playing him on the perimeter, where a lack of separation would be exacerbated. He needs to eliminate some of his drops for his ball skills to truly stand out, but it will be difficult to succeed in the league if he doesn’t learn how to get in and out of his breaks properly.

BNB Football: Cooper has a powerful Deebo Samuels-type build. He’s explosive off the line of scrimmage and capable of pulling away from DBs on deep routes. His hands are solid and he has great footwork while working along the side lines.

Colton Edwards (NFL draft analyst): Strong hands in contest/at the catch point. Good contact balance and upfield burst, becoming dangerous after the catch. His hand-eye coordination and body control near the sideline is impressive. That said, his route tree is limited and will need to grow at the next level. Has some wasted motion on routes, needs to sharpen his route running.

How Cooper compares to other receivers in the class

For an FCS product to stand out in the pre-draft process, they need to flex their muscle against players from bigger schools. Cooper didn’t have that opportunity. He was a snub for every major pre-draft event -- the Combine, Senior Bowl and East-West Shrine Bowl -- which speaks a great deal about how he is viewed around the league.

Cooper had a strong showing at his pro day. His 18 bench reps would’ve ranked third out of all receivers at the Combine. His 40-time (4.49) showed he has decent speed for a player his size. But overall, his physical attributes don’t pop off the page. His tape pops consistently, but it was recorded against few players who will ever sniff an NFL field.

To his credit, Cooper was a quarterback up until college. He’s still very raw at wide receiver and was only asked to run a handful of routes at Tarleton. There is still so much untapped ability for a player with, from all accounts, an extremely high work ethic. 

Strengths

• Wins contested catches
• Impressive body control
• Clutch gene: Recorded 20 catches, 351 yards and four touchdowns across Tarleton’s two playoff games. Made a number of big catches in “showcase games” against Baylor and TCU.
• High character: Stayed all five years at Tarleton, resisting a large number of transfer offers. Often stayed before and after practices to catch footballs from the Jugs machine.

Weaknesses

• Route-running needs more precision and variety
• Lacks elite physical traits
• Needs better separation on short and intermediate routes versus man coverage
• Lack of experience against top competition

Is history on his side?

Today, there is only one active NFL player from Tarleton State: E.J. Speed, an inside linebacker for the Houston Texans.

Like Cooper, Speed was not a part of any pre-draft luxuries yet broke through as a fifth-round pick in 2019 for the Indianapolis Colts. He brought value on special teams early in his career while working his way to a starting linebacker spot. He recorded 100+ tackles each of the last two seasons, making him by far the most productive Tarleton Texan in the NFL.

James Dearth and Rufus Johnson are the only other Texans who have been drafted in the modern era (since 1970), both in the sixth round. Dearth lasted 10 seasons as a long snapper, starting 144 consecutive games from 2001-2009 for the New York Jets.

Cooper has plenty of experience playing on special teams, even this past year as the FCS’s leading receiver. If there is a place for Cooper on an NFL roster, it’s likely going to be on special teams, and he brings that experience at the base of his ladder.

Draft projection

- 7th round, priority free agent

Cooper faces an uphill climb to an NFL roster.

Despite impressive production in college, his game still needs a good amount of polishing before it can translate to the pro level. He also possesses many uncoachable qualities on and off the field that can help him reach that point.

For more information on Cooper as a draft prospect and person, visit his feature profile done in March drawn from in-depth conversations with the man himself and his collegiate companions.

The 2025 NFL draft airs April 24-26 on ESPN, ABC and NFL Network.