The Jets’ offense will be shorthanded once again for Sunday afternoon’s division rival meeting with the Patriots, but they are set to receive a very nice boost on that side of the ball.
Gang Green is expected to welcome rookie wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. back to the lineup after missing each of the last four games due to a high-ankle sprain.
The young wideout, of course, went down with the injury on the tail-end of his first career reception which was a 30-yard catch and run deep down the field during the season opener.
New York’s offense has been looking for another partner alongside Garrett Wilson since then.
The expectation was that Adonai Mitchell would slide right into that role during his first full year with the team, however, he’s been sidelined the past couple of weeks due to a lingering finger injury.
With Mitchell still not yet ready to return after deciding it would be best to undergo a procedure, Cooper figures to have a pretty significant opportunity in front of him right out of the gate.
Him and fellow rookie Kenyon Sadiq healthy and back in the mix should help take some pressure off Wilson, especially as he deals with top Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez covering him this week.
Cooper had gotten off to a bit of a slow start during his first pro camp with Gang Green, but he only continued to grow as things drew closer and closer to the start of the regular season.
Head coach Aaron Glenn and the rest of his staff had nothing but positive things to say about the Indiana product, and he received the start as their third receiver during the season opener.
Though he only logged the one catch before going down with the injury, he was able to showcase some of the run-after-catch abilities that he displayed so often during his collegiate career.
Cooper hauled in the four-yard pass then twisted and turned his way around defenders, scampering his way 26 more yards down the field to get the Jets deep into the enemy red zone.
It’s exactly that type of big-play potential that this group has been looking for.
New York is coming off a much-needed win at home over the Cleveland Browns, but they still sit at 2-3 and are 27th in the league in scoring heading into Sunday’s divisional matchup.
With their offense still missing some key pieces and in desperate need of a boost, Cooper could quickly emerge as a regular in the passing game if he can stay healthy.