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The Philadelphia Eagles came into Super Bowl 59 prepared to blitz the Kansas City Chiefs. But as it turned out, the Eagles just didn’t need to send extra pass rushers as Philly’s ferocious front four were able to consistently pressure Patrick Mahomes, sacking the quarterback six times in the lopsided contest.
While the game eventually got away from the Chiefs, devolving into a blowout, Eagles’ rookie cornerback Cooper DeJean had his moment before the rout was officially on. DeJean, the former Iowa Hawkeyes standout, intercepted a Mahomes pass in the first half and returned it 38 yards for a touchdown, giving the Eagles a 17-0 lead halfway through the second quarter.
Yet while most Iowans rejoiced as DeJean scampered across the field and into the end zone, one very famous former Hawkeye was dejected. WNBA superstar Caitlin Clark is a lifelong Chiefs fan. And she found the team’s drubbing at the hands of the Eagles difficult to bear – despite her alum’s heroic efforts.
But to Clark’s credit, she managed to put her heartbreak aside and reach out to DeJean to congratulate him on his incredible accomplishment.
“I think us going to Iowa together, I think she was just saying that she was proud of me and congratulating me… not only that I scored a touchdown but winning the biggest game in football in my first year. So I appreciate her sending that message even though she’s a Chiefs fan,” DeJean said of Clark on The Pivot Podcast, via Hawk Central.
The epic pick-six was one of the most memorable moments from the Eagles’ 40-22 victory – a game that wasn’t nearly as close as the final score suggests. And DeJean picked an incredible time to record his first career interception and touchdown in the NFL.
While Clark wished DeJean the best leading up to the game, there was never any doubt regarding her allegiance. Sure she went to college with DeJean. But Clark is a Chiefs fan through and through. She was even seen attending Kansas City’s divisional matchup against the Houston Texans in a suite with Taylor Swift.
The Eagles selected DeJean in the second round of the 2024 draft out of Iowa. The young cornerback had a promising rookie season, racking up 51 total tackles, 0.5 sacks, a forced fumble, three fumble recoveries and six passes defended. And, of course, he capped his debut season with a pick-six off of Patrick Mahomes. It doesn’t get much better than that.
DeJean helped vault the Eagles from the 26th-ranked overall defense in 2023 to the best unit in the NFL in 2024. Still, his efforts pale in comparison to Clark’s first season in the WNBA. The Fever guard won Rookie of the Year, made the all-WNBA first team, was named an All-Star, set league records and was largely responsible for a historic surge in WNBA viewership.
Still, DeJean got the ring. And although it came at the...
