For the second straight week, a former Buckeye has earned an NFL award for their performance.
After former Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud earned AFC Offensive Player of the Week honors for his four-touchdown performance against the Baltimore Ravens, former Ohio State defensive end Jonathon Cooper received AFC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his two-sack performance against the New York Jets.
AFC Players of the Week! (Week 6)@PatrickMahomes | @JonathonCooper7 | @camerondicker | @Gatorade pic.twitter.com/y8Wd8uo4ka
— NFL (@NFL) October 15, 2025
In Denver's 13-11 win over New York, Cooper collected two of the Broncos' nine sacks on former Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields. Cooper's second sack sealed the game for his team and brought his career total to 28 through 70 games — the most sacks for a seventh-round draft pick in that span since the NFL adopted the seven-round draft format in 1994.
COOOOOOOOP
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) October 12, 2025
: @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/GMGsm0OvGW
GOT EM
— Denver Broncos (@Broncos) October 12, 2025
: @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/QgT83cnIjA
This fall, Cooper has collected 18 tackles, four tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and seven quarterback hits. According to Pro Football Focus, his 27 pressures rank eighth in the NFL. He trails league leaders like Detroit's Aidan Hutchinson (36) and Kansas City's George Karlaftis (32), but ranks ahead of stars such as Cleveland's Myles Garrett (25) and Las Vegas' Maxx Crosby (25).
Across five seasons in Denver, Cooper has made 70 appearances and 54 starts, totaling 234 tackles, 29 tackles for loss, 28 sacks and 54 quarterback hits. He’s also recorded five pass breakups, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries — one of which he returned for a touchdown in 2023.
