Under-the-radar Eagles receiver making strong roster push

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Little-known Eagles receiver Elijah Cooks is making a strong roster push out of nowhere.

Elijah Cooks has a pretty simple goal in training camp: Make a play every day.

He's pretty much on target.

"Just make a play a day," Cooks said. "That's how my mindset is. That's been my mindset since I got into the league. A play a day. I can only control what I can control but make a play a day and people are going to start noticing."

The 26-year-old receiver has been turning heads in training camp with some electric catches. Even if one doesn't come every day, he has been making enough plays to at least be in the running for a spot on the Eagles' 53-man roster.

And some of his catches, like his contested touchdown catch in the back of the end zone in Day 5, have been simply incredible.

At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, those 50-50 balls are Cooks' specialty.

"I always looked at that as a strength," he said. "I used to play basketball so going up and getting them 50-50 balls is kind of just my speciality. That's what I've always loved to do. I did it in college, tried to transition it into the league."

Cooks went undrafted out of San Jose State in 2023 but found a home with the Jaguars briefly. In 2023 and 2024, Cooks played in 11 games and had 3 catches for 38 yards. That's obviously not a ton of production but it's at least some experience that is helping him as he tries to make the Eagles' roster in 2025.

The Eagles actually signed Cooks to the practice squad for a week during the playoff run in 2024 so he got a chance to see the Super Bowl team up close. Even though he was on the roster for just seven days, that time meant a lot to Cooks.

"It meant everything for me," Cooks said. "I was just excited to come see the culture. The culture was completely different from what Jacksonville was like. This is a winning team, they always want to win. That's all they care about. They care about championships and that's what I want to be a part of."

After the season ended, the Eagles signed Cooks to a futures deal. And even though he missed spring practices with a minor injury, he has been a standout in the first seven days of training camp practices. After A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith and Jahan Dotson, there are receiver spots up for grabs and Cooks is making a strong case for himself.

While it's obviously still early, Cooks has made some spectacular grabs in the first seven days of camp.

"It always feels great to make a great catch like that but you can't think about it too much," he said. "You have to move on to the next day. Because we have practice for the next 30 days. You have to make a play every day."

While his basketball background helps with those contested catches -- Cooks says he calls 50-50 balls 70-30 balls -- that background helps with other aspects of the game as well.

Cooks said he was recently listening to an interview with new Hall of Famer Antonio Gates, who was talking up his basketball past as a pass catcher.

"He said playing basketball your whole life you go against bigger dudes," Cooks said. "So I'm used to playing against the bigger guys, trying to create space against bigger guys. Bringing it out here, it just helps me create space against guys who are hella fast like Adoree' (Jackson) and all those guys."

Cooks has really enjoyed getting to learn from A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith in training camp. Because Brown is also a bigger receiver, Cooks has benefited from seeing Brown use his frame to catch passes. Cooks on Friday marveled about how smooth Brown is on the field.

While Cooks is still trying to make a name for himself in the NFL, he has at least garnered the attention of his teammates in practice.

What has made Cooks so impressive this summer?

"First, I think his size," quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson said. "His big body ability, he definitely knows how to use it and go up top for the ball and kind of shed defenders that way. And then he's a smart kid, coming from Jacksonville and everything. He's definitely seen a lot of football, whether it's there at their practice squad or whatever. I think Elijah is really growing every day as a player and it's showing every day out here on the field. He's making some big catches for us."

While Cooks has always been good at contested catches, he doesn't want to be a one-trick pony. In fact, he admitted on Friday that his route-running was a little too sloppy in the spring so he lost some weight and worked at it this summer.

He also thinks his ability on special teams might give him an edge. Because if you're going to make a roster as a backup receiver, you better be able to play on teams.

"I believe I can play any special teams," Cooks said. "You can put me out there. I'm a football player at the end of the day. If I touch that field, I'm going to make a play. That's how I think about it."

The Eagles have a bunch of receivers fighting for just two or three roster spots this summer. After Brown, Smith and Dotson, the Eagles have nine other receivers on their roster. Most of them won't make the team.

But Cooks is fighting to stick around and he's off to a good start. And he's keeping the mindset he had as an undrafted rookie in 2023.

"I still look at it like I'm the same way," Cooks said. "I'm bottom of the barrel and I have to look at it like that the whole way through camp because any moment I could be gone. I just want to show this team that I am ready to be an Eagle, that I want to be an Eagle."