Omar Cooper Jr. flashed the exact trait the Jets drafted him for, and then the afternoon turned fast.
On his first real impact play in Sunday’s season opener at Nissan Stadium, the rookie wideout turned a Geno Smith throw into a 30-yard catch-and-run that carried New York to the Titans’ 4-yard line. Two plays later, Kenyon Sadiq finished the drive with a 3-yard end-around and the Jets were up 7-0. Not long after that, Cooper was on a cart and done for the day.
New York announced in the third quarter that Cooper would not return against Tennessee, and the team later posted on X: “Cooper has been downgraded to OUT and Fitzpatrick has been downgraded to DOUBTFUL”
Cooper has been downgraded to OUT and Fitzpatrick has been downgraded to DOUBTFUL https://t.co/WX4cQZb4jK
- New York Jets (@nyjets) September 13, 2026
The injury was to his ankle. CBS sideline reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala reported Cooper was carted off, and SNY noted the update. The Jets initially labeled him questionable to return before ruling him out once the second half began.
Cooper, 22, lined up in the slot and wasted no time making his case. The play on third-and-9 from the Titans’ 34 with 12:10 left in the first quarter was exactly the kind of burst-after-the-catch ability New York had in mind when it traded up for him.
The Jets took him at No. 30 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft after moving up from No. 33, adding him to a class that also included first-round tight end Kenyon Sadiq at No. 16 and edge rusher David Bailey at No. 2.
His college production at Indiana backed up the selection: 115 catches, 1,798 yards and 22 touchdowns over four seasons, per ESPN college stats.
For now, the bigger question is how long New York will be without him. The team said it would evaluate the ankle after the game, while RotoWire listed an estimated return of Sept.
- That remains only a projection, not an official timeline.
The Jets also had another injury issue on defense. Minkah Fitzpatrick, who was acquired from Miami in March and signed to a three-year, $40 million deal, was downgraded to doubtful with a groin strain.
He lasted six snaps before leaving, and Andre Cisco stepped in. Nickel Jarvis Brownlee Jr. also exited with a calf injury in the second quarter but returned in the second half, ESPN reported.
Even with the early setbacks, New York handled business. The Jets led 10-3 at halftime, then added a Breece Hall touchdown and two Jason Sanders field goals after the break to win 23-10.
Smith finished 19-of-24 for 215 yards, and Hall ran for 102 yards. The offense kept moving without Cooper, which matters heading into Week 2 against Green Bay.
The setting was part of the scene too: Nashville’s mid-September heat sat in the upper 80s to low 90s, and the crowd grew quiet after the opening drive. Later, Titans fans booed the offense off the field after a three-and-out, according to live reports from the stadium.
Cooper’s next checkpoint is imaging, followed by an update from head coach Aaron Glenn on Monday or Tuesday. For now, the Jets are treating it as a Week 1 loss rather than something season-changing, unless further tests say otherwise.
In Other News...
Robert Saleh Sounds Early Alarm After Titans Opener Unravels
The Titans season opener against the Jets never settled into the kind of rhythm Tennessee wanted, and by the end of a 23-10 loss, the issues were easy enough to spot. Head coach Robert Saleh pointed to missed throws from quarterback Cam Ward and a Jets running game that kept the Titans from finding much traction, leaving Tennessee with more questions than answers after one week.
Salehs postgame tone made clear this was less about one bad afternoon than about getting a team to tighten up before the schedule moves on. He was frustrated with how it unfolded, but the message was plain: the Titans have to clean up the execution quickly if they want the early part of the season to mean anything. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Already Face Early Heat After This Lifeless Home Opener
The Titans home opener turned into an ugly reset in front of a restless crowd, with the Jets leaving Nashville with a 23-10 win and a clear sense of momentum under first-year coach Aaron Glenn. It also marked a notable step forward for New York, which picked up its first winning record since early 2024 behind a steady debut from Glenn and offensive coordinator Frank Reich, plus solid work from Geno Smith and Breece Hall.
For Tennessee, the louder story was the reaction inside the building. The home crowd booed as the Titans sputtered through a flat afternoon, a sign of how quickly the early-season pressure can build when a game slips away at home. The schedule does not ease up from here, either, with Philadelphia next on the slate and little time for Tennessee to let this one linger. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Still Have One Big Problem Despite Staying Within Reach
At halftime against the Jets, the Titans were still hanging around, but the reasons for the gap on the scoreboard looked familiar. A short catch by rookie Carnell Tate gave him his first reception of the season, linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. was busy again with nine tackles, and Chimere Dike managed a grab after putting the ball on the ground on a kick return. Tennessee had enough individual flashes to stay within striking distance, even while the offense continued searching for steadier answers.
The bigger concern was on the other side of the ball, where Alontae Taylor had a rough stretch in coverage and was flagged for pass interference. For a team trying to keep games close and create opportunities late, that kind of breakdown is costly because it erases the work done elsewhere. The Titans were still alive at the break, but the defensive margin for error already looked thin. [Read more 🡒]