Cooper’s role should grow over time

Cooper played extensively in the Jets’ first preseason game, prompting The Athletic’s Zach Rosenblatt to write that WR Isaiah Williams appeared to have overtaken Cooper for the starting slot receiver job. This week, Cooper out-snapped WR Isaiah Williams six to one on the first drive. Williams continued playing on the second drive before rotating with Cooper on the third. PFF’s Nathan Jahnke notes that when Cooper returned, he lined up out wide while Williams manned the slot. Williams caught 3-of-5 targets for 17 yards and one fumble, though it was recovered by the Jets. It appears as though Cooper may have regained his spot as the Jets’ WR3 behind WR1 Garrett Wilson and WR2 Adonai Mitchell. Cooper still makes for a risky late-round dart throw, but he will get more chances to contribute.

We blurbed about Cooper playing deep into the preseason game on Friday — never a great sign — and this backs that up. Williams, an outstanding return man in his rookie season, enters the deep sleeper conversation at wideout.

Cooper entered the game on the Jets’ second drive, after the established starters called it a night. The usage meant Cooper played behind WR Isaiah Williams, who played 7-of-11 snaps on the first drive. Cooper continued playing through the Jets’ sixth drive. According to Rotoworld’s own Kyle Dvorchak, the last non-quarterback first-round rookie to play that late is former Titans WR Treylon Burks, back in his 2022 rookie season. This does not bode well for Cooper’s early-season usage.

The Jets traded up and used the No. 30 overall pick in this year’s draft to select Cooper, but the hype surrounding Adonai Mitchell as the team’s No. 2 receiver has been the biggest piece of offseason news in what is a completely revamped passing game. That said, Cimini praised Cooper for both his route running and physicality this spring while noting that the former Indiana product “should be even better when the pads go on in training camp.” Cooper excelled at generating yards after the catch last season with the Hoosiers, forcing 27 missed tackles on 69 receptions, good for an impressive 39.1 percent missed tackles forced rate. He played 77 percent of his snaps from the slot last season, and seems like the early favorite to lead the Jets in slot snaps this season with Garrett Wilson and Mitchell serving as the primary options on the outside.

Cooper Jr. (6’/199) redshirted as a freshman and filled a backup role as a sophomore. He made a name for himself in 2024 by leading the BIG 10 in yards per catch (21.2) while playing exclusively on the outside. He was a prototypical field-stretching WR2, running over 90 percent of his routes from out wide with an average target depth of 16 yards. Curt Cignetti then moved him into the slot for his senior season and everything clicked. Cooper racked up 937 yards and 13 touchdowns on 69 grabs. He also ran in a touchdown for the second year in a row. Cooper averaged over seven yards after the catch per reception in each of his two final seasons at Indiana. As a senior, he forced more missed tackles (27) on receptions than all but three FBS players. He isn’t quite as dynamic as Deebo Samuel. No one is. But he is the closest a first-round prospect has come to Samuel in a while. Cooper’s strong YAC numbers make him a great complement to Garrett Wilson, who is a phenomenal target-earner but has never added much after the catch.

Reid also reported last week that the Jets were “extremely high” on Cooper, who broke out last season at Indiana for 937 yards and 13 touchdowns on 69 receptions. Cooper has put together a solid last two seasons at Indiana and has made a name for himself as a good slot receiver who can generate plenty of yards after the catch. He saw a career-high 83.3 percent of his snaps come from the slot last season. With Garrett Wilson cemented on the outside and Adonai Mitchell showing flashes in his eight games with Gang Green last season, the addition of Cooper could give the Jets three solid, young receivers for the upcoming season if they were to take him.

Cooper would have the chance to assume No. 2 wide receiver duties right out of the gate if the Commanders were to draft him. The front office was interested in signing WR Romeo Doubs before he signed with the Patriots and would have pursued Colts WR Alec Pierce had he not re-signed with Indianapolis. 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk’s status remains in flux. Cooper played very little in his 2022 freshman season, but contributed meaningfully in 2023 and 2024 in a perimeter-heavy role. He then kicked inside in 2025, manning Indiana’s starting slot role. His versatility would likely allow him to line up opposite WR Terry McLaurin in two-wide receiver sets.

Cooper, 22, continues to make the rounds this pre-draft cycle with the draft just over two weeks away. The versatile, do-it-all receiver who has drawn comparisons to Deebo Samuel is viewed as a fringe first-round prospect and could immediately step in to help whatever team drafts him. Cooper was a full-time slot receiver in 2025 with the Hoosiers, but can work on the outside, and would pair well opposite Chris Olave and would face little competition from incumbent receivers for snaps. Cooper caught 69 passes for 937 yards and 13 touchdowns last season, and has totaled over 1,500 receiving yards and 20 touchdowns since 2024.

Per Reid, the team views him " as an ideal complementary WR2 to Garrett Wilson.” Although the Jets are doing their homework on quarterback prospects, some reports indicate that they are not interested in drafting a quarterback in the first round. Reid adds to that idea, telling readers not to be surprised if the Jets refrain from using any of their three picks in the Nos. 1-33 range on a quarterback. The Jets “are expected to be aggressive in boosting their wide receivers room.”

Across the 2025 college football regular season, Cooper outright led, or tied for the team-high, all Hoosiers pass catchers with 75 targets, 58 receptions, 804 yards and 11 touchdowns while averaging 2.68 yards per route run. Per Reid, Cooper could be an option for the Panthers with the No. 19 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.