NFL Player News

Born and bred into an Ohio State family, Cooper (6’2/253) grew up in the Columbus area and realized his boyhood dream of playing for the Buckeyes. A five-star prospect who was rated as the third best weakside defensive end from the 2016 prep class according to 247Sports, he was crowned as the Ohio Defensive Player of the Year as a high school senior. A locker room leader and program tone-setter, Cooper was named a two-time team captain. Sat out the remainder of his 2019 season after suffering a high-ankle injury that cost him 10 games so he could preserve his redshirt, return to school in 2020 to boost his draft profile and finish his OSU career on a high note. That’s just what he did, as Cooper achieved All-Big Ten status for a second time while registering 24 tackles, 3.5 sacks, a 21 percent pass rush win rate and a crisp 90.5 pass rush grade on the year. He brings heavy hands and a tireless motor to his approach, which helps him to convert his speed into power. Not a threat to corner on tackles on the edge due to his tight frame and failed to record a single non-sack TFL in eight 2020 contests. He tested pretty well, throwing up 28 bench reps (90th percentile), a 4.71 40-yard dash (86th) and a 7.02 second 3-cone (90th). He lacks the requisite length to be a true every down threat in the NFL and would likely be destined for a reserve, passing down 4-3 defensive end role if he can stick.

He’ll miss at least four games. Tanor Bortolini figures to take over at center in Kelly’s absence, as he did earlier this year. Kelly played 100% of the snaps in Week 9 and was not listed with an injury.

He was on injured reserve after a disastrous first few games for the Cowboys. Per Phillips’ Instagram, he appears to be headed back to the Bills.

The price they wanted was simply too high for the market to bear, per multiple reports. (The Preston Smith deal probably shows you where the market was actually at, versus the Giants wanting a fifth-rounder.) Ojulari will enter free agency at season’s end instead.

Whelming. Davis has played in all nine games as a rotational interior player for the Texans, though his snaps have been cut of late with Denico Autry healthy. The 49ers badly needed interior depth and paid a price for it. Perhaps one of the lowest prices one can pay in the NFL. The Texans held them to “not a pick swap” though.

Guess that’s another year he’s not helping any best ball teams. Okwuegbunam was placed on injured reserve near last cuts, but the Eagles likely decided they’d rather have that IR spot open for someone else. Okwuegbunam should catch on with a new team soon.

Richardson has stumbled into a rare zone: He’s too talented to give up on, and too flawed for a team with playoff ambitions to start. The Colts probably will turn back to Richardson at some point this year, no matter how stubbornly Shane Steichen seems to suggest otherwise. The market for moving quarterbacks usually peaks in the offseason anyway, and that will probably be the real test for the Colts.

White had been given permission to seek a trade in late October. The Ravens will take a shot on the 29-year-old as they desperately try to find another potential answer at cornerback. The cost was, well, a year of waiting to take a seventh-round pick. Hard to critique either the Ravens for biting or the Rams for letting White move on.

There was smoke around the idea that the Panthers would at least listen to offers for Young, but apparently they didn’t like what they heard. Ultimately it’s not surprising as most teams view quarterback as a position to upgrade in the offseason — perhaps the Panthers will eventually move on from Young then. Young, 23, looks likely to start against the Giants this week after playing one of the better games of his career in a win over the Saints in Week 9.

Turner was the Commanders offensive coordinator for three years, during which the team had the following players play quarterback: Alex Smith, Dwayne Haskins, Kyle Allen, Taylor Heinicke, Garrett Gilbert, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Sam Howell, and Carson Wentz. The Wentz trade eventually shifted the Commanders into a pure run-the-ball team, but before that Turner was a short-pass maestro. It’s hard to see how this changes the offense with (likely) Desmond Ridder in tow at quarterback — we’d bet they remain as conservative as ever. Perhaps Jakobi Meyers and Brock Bowers get a few more open looks per game than they had been getting under Luke Getsy.

Smith, who had eight or more sacks in each of the 2021-2023 seasons, had seen his snaps decline recently as Kingsley Enagbare and Lukas Van Ness grew into bigger roles. The 31-year-old is a nice pick up for the Steelers given the lack of pass-rushing depth they had behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith. the Steelers will take on Smith’s contract and the Packers will take on $5 million in dead money on the 2025 cap to make the deal happen.