Evan Cooper's love of football fostered by his family and hometown

[Sir Purr]

Not only is Cooper's grandmother, Margaret Axem, schooled on defensive coverages, but she'll also call her grandson with postgame critiques.


"I know a little bit," Axem said. "I just say, 'Your coverage wasn't quite straight,' or 'You weren't quite where you should've been' or something to that effect. The same goes for zone coverage or man-to-man. 'If you were in zone coverage, you were in the wrong area,' something like that."


Many football watchers can't tell the difference between zone or man coverage, so intentionally or not, Axem was downplaying her knowledge of the game.


"She would not ask why (a certain coverage was played), but she would say, 'Hey, I saw you playing man. He was trying to follow him around. I see what you're trying to do, but they caught it on him,'" Cooper said with a laugh.


Partnering those strong family ties with his upbringing in South Florida made Cooper love the game even more.


"Miami is a football place. Like on the weekends, you don't go to the movies, you play football on the street. In my neighborhood where I'm from, you play tackle, or two-hand touch," Cooper said. "You play football, you love football, you watch football.


"You go play Little League football, and that's like college football in Miami. Then you go into playing high school football, and you go play college football, and if you're lucky enough, you play in the pros. That's how it is in Miami. I'm sure if you talk to (quarterback) Teddy (Bridgewater) or any of the Miami guys, they'll tell you football is king in Miami."