According to 9NEWS Denver’s Mike Klis, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has placed Denver Broncos OLB Jonathon Cooper on the NFL Commissioner’s exempt list. As Klis notes, Cooper will be on paid leave until further notice and cannot play or practice while on the list. He also will not count toward the Broncos’ 53-man roster while on the list.
The NFL Commissioner’s Exempt List is a special paid administrative leave status used to hold a player away from game action while serious off-field legal or personal investigations are pending. As we know, Cooper was arrested twice this offseason and is facing multiple charges, including Felony Second-Degree Assault. He has a scheduled arraignment on Monday, August 31st, so we shall see what happens there.
Cooper could still face a suspension from these charges. Under NFL policy, domestic violence offenses can carry a baseline suspension of six games. With Cooper’s legal case expected to take months, it could be a while before he faces a suspension, but again, we have to see how everything shakes out moving forward.
This was an expected move and gives the Broncos some clarity as they begin trimming their roster from 91 players to 53 throughout the day today. With Cooper sidelined for the foreseeable future, third-year edge rusher Jonah Elliss is expected to be the starter opposite All-Pro Nik Bonitto. Elliss has had a strong summer and was consistently pressuring the quarterback throughout the preseason. Look for second-year edge rusher Que Robinson, who Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph said looked like a future starter during his rookie year, to get some significant snaps as well off the bench. Same goes for reserve edge rusher/interception specialist Dondrea Tillman.
The Broncos thankfully have some depth at edge rusher to handle the loss of Jonathon Cooper for however long he is sidelined. This does weaken their depth a bit, so it will be interesting to see whether they add pass-rush depth in the coming days.
At the end of the day, this is an expected move as Klis has been talking about it all week. We’ll see what happens during his arraignment tomorrow and how this progresses in the coming days, weeks, and possibly months.
