Green Bay Packers linebacker Edgerrin Cooper will miss the entire 2026 NFL season after tests confirmed a torn Achilles tendon, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported on Monday. The injury forced Cooper off the field late in the Packers’ Week 4 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Head coach Matt LaFleur described the outlook as “not good” following the game and said the team was preparing for Cooper to be sidelined for the rest of the year. The 24-year-old had already made a significant impact this season, recording 30 tackles, three sacks, and an interception through four games.
Cooper, a second-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, is in his third professional season. As a rookie, he appeared in 14 games with four starts, accumulating 87 combined tackles, 3.5 sacks, and one interception. His performance earned him a sixth-place finish in the Defensive Rookie of the Year voting. Last season, Cooper started 16 games and tallied 118 tackles, half a sack, and four passes defended.
This season, Cooper was on pace to match or surpass his previous production. His three sacks through four games came close to his rookie year total, and his interception return for 18 yards added to his contributions. The loss of Cooper is another significant blow to Green Bay’s defense.
The Packers have already been dealing with multiple injuries. Linebacker Micah Parsons remains out recovering from a torn ACL suffered in 2025 and has yet to play this season. Wide receiver Jayden Reed’s neck injury in Week 2 required season-ending surgery, while offensive lineman Zach Bako-Bewele tore his patellar tendon and will also miss the remainder of the campaign. Backup tight end Luke Musgrave suffered a neck injury during mandatory minicamp, but the team remains hopeful he can return at some point in 2026.
With Cooper sidelined, inside linebacker Isaiah McDuffie is expected to take on a larger role. McDuffie recorded four tackles in the Week 4 win, but LaFleur acknowledged he won’t fully replicate Cooper’s presence on defense. The Packers will have to adjust their linebacker corps to compensate for the loss of one of their foundational defenders.
The injury to Cooper adds to a mounting list of challenges for Green Bay’s defense, which faces the task of maintaining its competitiveness without several key players on the field. The team’s response to these setbacks will be closely watched as they navigate the rest of the 2026 season.
According to Yahoo Sports.
