Jets, Omar Cooper Jr. both catch a break near end of first round
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Omar Cooper Jr. played receiver at Indiana, but he was an Ohio State Buckeyes fan in high school and really enjoyed watching one player in particular. That player is now Cooper’s teammate.
Garrett Wilson.
Cooper, the third of the Jets’ three first-round picks in Thursday night’s NFL Draft, said it hasn’t sunk in that he will be playing with, learning from and sharing a receiver room with Wilson. Only three years separate them, but there were many aspects of Wilson’s game that Cooper admired.
“Really everything,” Cooper said Friday afternoon. “He has some really good releases, a really good route runner and attacked the ball really well in college. And just how aggressive he played, that was something that I really found enjoyable.”
Cooper plans to bring some of those attributes to the Jets this season.
Indiana’s leading receiver last year, Cooper caught 69 passes for 937 yards and 13 touchdowns for the undefeated national champs. He made his mark creating yards after contact. Cooper forced 27 missed tackles, the fourth most among FBS receivers.
That playmaking ability and his role on a winning team drew the Jets to Cooper and their other two first-round selections. The Jets are trying to break a 15-year playoff drought and could use as many players from winning backgrounds as they could get.
They chose Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey with the No. 2 pick. He helped the Red Raiders reach the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff. They drafted versatile Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq at 16. The Ducks lost in the semifinals of the CFP to Indiana and Cooper, who the Jets traded back into the first round to take.
“Anytime you bring guys with a winning background on your team, that only helps the morale of your team,” Aaron Glenn said.
Bailey led the FBS with 14 ½ sacks last season and will give the Jets’ pass rush a needed boost. Sadiq and Cooper were important additions. The Jets are a more explosive and potentially dangerous offensive team now.
They had the NFL’s worst-passing offense last season and scored the fourth-fewest points. The Jets now have more weapons for Geno Smith, and Wilson has help.
The Jets have a talented, young receiving corps now with Wilson, Cooper and Adonai Mitchell. An Indianapolis native, Cooper also familiar with Mitchell, who played for the Colts.
“I feel like that is a really good group of receivers and we could do something special,” Cooper said. “But it ain’t going to be given to us.”
Cooper was hoping the Jets would draft him. He said he felt a connection with Glenn from a conversation in his office during a top-30 visit at the Jets facility.
When the Jets took Sadiq with the No. 16 pick, Cooper figured he was destined to play for another team. Then the Jets acquired the No. 30 pick from San Francisco for 33 and 179 and called Cooper to tell him he would be a Jet.
“Definitely glad they came back, for sure,” Cooper said.
A big, strong receiver, Cooper has drawn comparisons to Deebo Samuel in part because of his yards-after-the-catch ability. Cooper’s most talked about reception was a game-winning leaping, toe-tapping touchdown grab in back of the end zone to lift Indiana over Penn State. Cooper believes that catch helped his draft stock.
“I feel like that's kind of what got my name really known,” he said. “I feel like just that play, they started really seeing what I was and started watching me a little bit more after that.”
The Jets were impressed and believe there are more memorable and significant catches in Cooper’s future.
Jets draft another Hoosier
Mougey made another deal on Friday and selected one of Cooper’s teammates who has been compared to Glenn.
The Jets drafted Indiana junior cornerback D’Angelo Ponds with the No. 50 pick in the second round that they acquired from Detroit. The Jets sent the Lions the No. 44 choice for 50 and 128 in the fourth round.
“I think we have some similarities,” Ponds said of the Glenn comparisons. “That’s definitely a compliment.”
Ponds is undersized (5-foot-9), but he makes up for it with his speed, aggressiveness and instincts. He had 61 tackles last season, four for loss, two interceptions and 11 passes defended last year. Ponds transferred to Indiana in 2024 after playing one season at James Madison.
Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.
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