The Jets’ preseason opener just made rookie Anez Cooper impossible to ignore

New York Jets guard Anez Cooper achieved a rare feat on Friday night: he made us care about a sixth-round offensive lineman in a preseason game.

In all seriousness, major kudos to Cooper, a three-year starter at Miami and the No. 188 pick this past April. With so much of the attention on fellow rookies David Bailey and Cade Klubnik, Cooper impressed against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and more than held his own against a talented defense. 

According to Pro Football Focus, Cooper had a 90.9 overall grade and allowed zero pressures on 20 pass-blocking snaps. Yet, that only earned him an 85.2 pass-block grade and an 89.5 run-block grade, though that doesn’t change the reality that he looked sharp in his preseason debut.

Where does Anez Cooper fit into the New York Jets’ offensive line plans?

As argued previously, Pro Football Focus grades are notoriously subjective, and their math often gets extremely confusing. We’re not sure how someone can have a 90.9 overall grade when they didn’t top 90% in either pass blocking or run blocking. That’d be like consistently getting B’s on your history tests yet scoring a 90 in the class itself. You don’t need to be a mathematics major to realize that PFF’s system lacks trustworthy consistency. 

But PFF grades can be useful as supplementary material, especially when they agree with the eye test and counting statistics. No sacks were credited to Cooper, and he’s already becoming the yearly example of a late-round pick gaining traction in proving that they were worth the investment. We tend to forget how valuable late-round picks can be, outside of quarterbacks or All-Pro selections.

Barring an injury to Dylan Parham, though, Cooper will almost certainly open this season on the bench. As for next year, that’s where things get interesting. Parham signed a two-year deal this past March; it only includes $7.49 million in guaranteed money, none of which is tied to next season. He turns 25 next week and has started 64 games in his four years with the Raiders.

If Parham plays well at left guard, then the Jets won’t have to worry about losing him in free agency. Cutting a player coming off a strong season and who has no guaranteed money wouldn’t make sense, regardless of the Jets’ final record. 

Josh Myers is a free agent after next season, and it remains to be seen whether the recently extended Joe Tippmann will eventually move back to center. 

But for now, Cooper already appears assured of a 53-man roster spot, and he should expect to continue seeing significant action over the final two preseason games. If Friday night was a preview of how he’ll fare against the Steelers and Giants, then how can we ignore watching the backup offensive line? 

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