“I mean, it sucks, but it’s football,” said Cooper after his 6 receptions on 7 targets for 103 yards (17.2 per). Cooper became just the third Jet in franchise history since the merger to record a 100-yard receiving game in just his second career game, joining Derrick Gafney (1978) and Garrett Wilson (2022).
He added: “I figured the first catch I had, a touchdown they called back. That kind of just gave me a little bit more confidence, even though it didn’t count. But it just made me realize, ‘OK, you got tackled, you caught the ball, you good.’ So now it’s time to get ready.”
And he was ready when Smith rolled to his right and launched a third-quarter pass his way for a 48-yard TD … that one counted.
“I just had like a post, Garrett had a deep out on the other side,” Cooper said. “And my job was to stand inside, get very cool, cross the safety space, I got a little cool outside across the space, and just look up and hope that Geno was able to recognize it.”
He said he didn’t realize he had gone over 100 yards in the game, but was thankful and relieved that he got through his first complete game in the NFL unscathed.
“Everything felt good, OK, it’s your first real game that you fully played and your body’s good,” he said.