Jonathan Cooper on track for a starting job

[the_h0wey]

Jonathan Cooper on track for a starting job
Posted by Mike Florio on August 6, 2017, 12:57 PM EDT

A top-10 pick of the Cardinals in 2013, offensive lineman Jonathan Cooper has been a major disappointment.

He has started only 14 games over four years, bouncing from Arizona to New England to Cleveland. He’s on track to start up to 16 in 2017.

Cooper is listed as the starting left guard in the new-look Dallas offensive line, replacing free-agent departure Ron Leary. Cooper joins La'el Collins, who replaces the retired Doug Free at right tackle.

Mainstays Tyron Smith, Zack Martin, and Travis Frederick holding their spots at left tackle, right guard, and center.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2017/08/06/jonathan-cooper-on-track-for-a-starting-job/

There couldn't be a more ideal position for him than in Dallas. If he can live up to half of his potential he will be a more than adequate replacement for Leary.

 

[dallasdave]

There couldn't be a more ideal position for him than in Dallas. If he can live up to half of his potential he will be a more than adequate replacement for Leary.

 

[dallasdave]

I heard he plays great Tunes.

 

[dallasdave]

Cooper has the skills to be an outstanding lineman. He was highly regarded coming out of college.

 

[Floatyworm]

Surprisingly good and agile to me. His blocks seem to be on point.

I worry about his staminia...he looks like he wears down...then loses technique. But the talent is there...for sure. He just needs to get in better shape.

 

[gimmesix]

You mean Chaz Green isnt winning the job? How many years in a row has been injured again?

It's too bad because the physical ability seems to be there. I think he would provide more power than we'll get from Cooper but probably would be more likely to lose when tackles convert from power to speed. That's a technique thing, though, that he could learn.

 

[Stash]

It's too bad because the physical ability seems to be there. I think he would provide more power than we'll get from Cooper but probably would be more likely to lose when tackles convert from power to speed. That's a technique thing, though, that he could learn.

Why would you expect more power from Green than Cooper?

 

[gimmesix]

Why would you expect more power from Green than Cooper?

Because he showed good pop in the few games we've seen him at tackle. If you can ignore the fact that you have to listen to Broaddus, this video shows that. Granted, it's just one play, but going off memory, that's what I remember of him.

Cooper didn't show me that ability to jar defenders. He wasn't able to drive them out, but primarily just maintained his position.

 

[diefree666]

Because he showed good pop in the few games we've seen him at tackle. If you can ignore the fact that you have to listen to Broaddus, this video shows that. Granted, it's just one play, but going off memory, that's what I remember of him.

Cooper didn't show me that ability to jar defenders. He wasn't able to drive them out, but primarily just maintained his position.

I saw several instances where he drove defenders back. Not sure what you were looking at.

 

[Stash]

Because he showed good pop in the few games we've seen him at tackle. If you can ignore the fact that you have to listen to Broaddus, this video shows that. Granted, it's just one play, but going off memory, that's what I remember of him.

Cooper didn't show me that ability to jar defenders. He wasn't able to drive them out, but primarily just maintained his position.

So your assessment is based off of that one play and the Hall of Fame game?

 

[gimmesix]

So your assessment is based off of that one play and the Hall of Fame game?

No. I said going off memory with Green, not that one play. I used that one play because I took a quick look for examples that I could show you.

 

[gimmesix]

I saw several instances where he drove defenders back. Not sure what you were looking at.

I did a play-by-play observation of Cooper and most of the time he didn't give much ground in the running game but he didn't gain much either. In pass protection, he bent but he didn't break and his defender wasn't able to shake him. The pass protection was a good thing. With the run blocking, it's a question only if he was doing what was asked of him. It seemed like Morris and Smith adjusted to the blocking up front, so staying with his man allowed them to do that.

There's only a couple of run blocks in the video xwalker posted earlier in this thread, but those plays were typical of his run blocking in the Hall of Fame game.

 

[gimmesix]

So your assessment is based off of that one play and the Hall of Fame game?

My assessment of Cooper is going off the Hall of Fame game and what I've seen from videos. He's not a power player. That's what I saw of him in college as well and was what I was concerned about in his game when he was one of our draft targets. Fortunately, in this scheme, being a power blocker isn't as big of a deal. He had a couple of run blocks in this game where he man was able to punch him and get away, but for the most part he maintained contact.

Here are draft reports on him if you doubt this:

Rob Rang: WEAKNESSES: Cooper lacks overpowering strength and can be pushed into the pocket by bigger, stronger defensive tackles when he allows his pad level to rise. Was prone to an occasional slipped block and/or needless penalty earlier in his career, though he showed much more consistency as a senior. Underwent shoulder surgery before his senior season, which will have to be checked out by team doctors.

Lance Zeirlein: Has only average height and bulk, and is a bit long-legged for the position (though he should continue to grow in an NFL strength and conditioning program). Functional strength is only adequate; stronger tackles get a bit of push against him in pass protection. Will have occasional missed assignments in pass protection.

You can read the rest here: https://www.patspulpit.com/2016/4/3/11287468/revisiting-jonathan-coopers-scouting-report

 

[xwalker]

My assessment of Cooper is going off the Hall of Fame game and what I've seen from videos. He's not a power player. That's what I saw of him in college as well and was what I was concerned about in his game when he was one of our draft targets. Fortunately, in this scheme, being a power blocker isn't as big of a deal. He had a couple of run blocks in this game where he man was able to punch him and get away, but for the most part he maintained contact.

Here are draft reports on him if you doubt this:

Rob Rang: WEAKNESSES: Cooper lacks overpowering strength and can be pushed into the pocket by bigger, stronger defensive tackles when he allows his pad level to rise. Was prone to an occasional slipped block and/or needless penalty earlier in his career, though he showed much more consistency as a senior. Underwent shoulder surgery before his senior season, which will have to be checked out by team doctors.

Lance Zeirlein: Has only average height and bulk, and is a bit long-legged for the position (though he should continue to grow in an NFL strength and conditioning program). Functional strength is only adequate; stronger tackles get a bit of push against him in pass protection. Will have occasional missed assignments in pass protection.

You can read the rest here: https://www.patspulpit.com/2016/4/3/11287468/revisiting-jonathan-coopers-scouting-report

Cooper was really good in the HOF game. He did have 1 snap where he seemed to just stand there and got beaten easily, but all of his other snaps were quite good. He was particularly good moving down the line while staying on his block on the Zone Stretch runs.

The Cowboys are not all that focused on blowing up defenders in the running game. They're more focused on precision blocking (both man and zone).

In the past they coached Parnell to back off on always trying to annihilate defenders and they'll likely do that with La'el also.

Cooper appears to be a good bit heavier now than he was in college.

I'm confident that he'll be at least average IF he can stay healthy. He really hasn't been much healthier than Chaz Green over his career.

I was not that impressed with Bell at RG. Part of it was the fact that Nkemdiche was over there and didn't move over to the left to test Cooper, but Bell did have some struggles. Nkemdiche did rock La'el back really good on 1 snap and he caused significant problems for Looney. I really would like to have seen Nkemdiche against Cooper.

 

[DallasDomination]

If you want to believe Dallas Cowboys.com's Bryan Broaddus, Cooper lost a lot of his mobility after breaking his leg as a rookie in Arizona. He says Cooper plays with power but has a lot of trouble in space and blocking targets on the move.

However, he will be surrounded by all-pros, and perhaps they can help raise his level of play as well.

Good thing he doesn't needs to block a lot of people in space.

 

[gimmesix]

Cooper was really good in the HOF game. He did have 1 snap where he seemed to just stand there and got beaten easily, but all of his other snaps were quite good. He was particularly good moving down the line while staying on his block on the Zone Stretch runs.

The Cowboys are not all that focused on blowing up defenders in the running game. They're more focused on precision blocking (both man and zone).

In the past they coached Parnell to back off on always trying to annihilate defenders and they'll likely do that with La'el also.

Cooper appears to be a good bit heavier now than he was in college.

I'm confident that he'll be at least average IF he can stay healthy. He really hasn't been much healthier than Chaz Green over his career.

I was not that impressed with Bell at RG. Part of it was the fact that Nkemdiche was over there and didn't move over to the left to test Cooper, but Bell did have some struggles. Nkemdiche did rock La'el back really good on 1 snap and he caused significant problems for Looney. I really would like to have seen Nkemdiche against Cooper.

I saw two plays where Cooper's man was able to shock him with a punch or rip away from him, but otherwise he kept with his man. I think both of those plays were on stretch runs, but I'm not 100 percent sure. There were plays where he did not get movement and clogged up the inside some, but none of these were major flaws. If Nkemdiche wasn't blowing up Bell, Cooper's blocks on those plays might have been good enough to cut off of.

So I agree that this scheme does allow for more of what he was good at, but what he's not at good at showed up at times IMO, just not enough for it to be a big deal. I also agree that Bell had a few issues where he allowed penetration, mainly to Nkemdiche.

 

[diefree666]

Cooper should improve as he gets used to working with everyone. That is something very vital for great O line play; working as a unit. He appears to have enough power and strength to do the job; and the mobility to get where he needs to get. And it also seems he realizes this is probably his last chance to make it in the NFL so he will do all that is needed to be done. Looking at the other candidates for LG none of them have his overall ability except maybe Green and relying on him is just too risky.

 

[gimmesix]

Cooper was really good in the HOF game. He did have 1 snap where he seemed to just stand there and got beaten easily, but all of his other snaps were quite good. He was particularly good moving down the line while staying on his block on the Zone Stretch runs.

The Cowboys are not all that focused on blowing up defenders in the running game. They're more focused on precision blocking (both man and zone).

In the past they coached Parnell to back off on always trying to annihilate defenders and they'll likely do that with La'el also.

Cooper appears to be a good bit heavier now than he was in college.

I'm confident that he'll be at least average IF he can stay healthy. He really hasn't been much healthier than Chaz Green over his career.

I was not that impressed with Bell at RG. Part of it was the fact that Nkemdiche was over there and didn't move over to the left to test Cooper, but Bell did have some struggles. Nkemdiche did rock La'el back really good on 1 snap and he caused significant problems for Looney. I really would like to have seen Nkemdiche against Cooper.

Here are the breakdowns from the offense's first two drives. I quit writing down my analysis after the first two drives. As you can tell by this, Cooper was solid on most of these snaps.

Keith Smith with an 11-yard return on a short kick behind blocking by Gathers and Lenny Jones. Jones' man beat his block to make the tackle, but neither got much of a push and about five Cardinals were there to make the play.

1st and 10 - Moore dropped back, right end stopped his rush, jumped and knocked down the pass. Looney and Cooper gave up ground on the interior, but it was a quick drop and pass. Collins and Bell doubled the left end and he went nowhere. Gathers went out into the right flat and a linebacker was right there with him

2nd and 10 - Handoff to McFadden behind right guard for 2 yards. It looked like he could have bounced it outside for a bigger gain because Collins just slapped the left end out of the play when he tried to stop his rush and play contain. Cooper took on the right defensive tackle and didn't get movement, but held him up long enough that he wouldn't have made the play. Bell and Looney doubled Nkemdiche, but got no movement, then Nkemdiche beat Looney to make the tackle when Bell peeled off to clear a linebacker from the hole. It's possible the linebacker would have gotten McFadden if he had tried to bounce the run. Gathers tried to block an end, who quickly ripped away from him and made the tackle along with Nkemdiche.

3rd and 8 - 6-yard slant to Andy Jones. Gathers went up the middle but didn't shake the linebacker. Collins set up well to force the left end to try to go around him. The end tried the arm-over technique, but Collins gave him a shove to make him no factor. Cooper and Looney doubled the right defensive tackle and he pretty much was stopped in his tracks. Bell's man, who I think was Nkemdiche, had him on skates and probably would have been able to put some pressure on Moore if it had not been a quick throw. Seems like we were expecting pressure on the play because of the quick, short throw.

Kickoff return - Lenoir with a 15-yard return. Gathers got knocked back as a blocker, which led to Lenoir bouncing the return toward the sideline. (There were a bunch of Cardinals in a clump, so it wasn't just Gathers' block that led to the decision, but it was the block closest to him at the time and with the most penetration.) Leon McFadden called for holding as he tried to prevent his man from pulling away and keeping Lenoir from getting around the corner.

1st and 10 - Pass to Smith for 8 on a roll-out. Dallas had the Cardinals going with the fake run to the right. Collins pushed his man that way then jerked him to the ground. Cooper had no problem pushing his man that direction, either. Gathers was on the right side of the formation, chipped Collins' man then blocked a DB and kind of got hung up on him. Bell's man forced his way by him and a couple of others were unblocked, but all three went for the play-action first which made it a fairly easy pitch and catch.

2nd and 2 - McFadden loses 4 when Looney gets beat badly off the snap. McFadden was heading toward right tackle, where Collins had not driven his man out of the way. However, without Looney's mistake, McFadden would have easily been able to cut inside the block. Cooper did a good job of taking his man down the line of scrimmage, but was looking to get off him and get to the second level. (Cleary was trailing and dived to knock Cooper's man down.) The left end went inside of Gathers, who then pushed him past the play. No blame for McFadden on that one. Nkemdiche blew it up, allowing a linebacker to come in and finish it.

3rd and 6 - Pass to wide-open Jarwin for about 15. Collins' man was kept well away, tried a spin move that didn't work, then tried to bull him back. Cooper and Cleary handled a stunt well, with Cooper taking his man to the ground. Bell allowed late pressure as the ball was coming out. Gathers was running a deeper pattern that went offscreen after he headed straight upfield.

1st and 10 - Fake handoff and deep ball to Butler, who raced through a weak jam and had his man beaten by 3 or 4 yards. Collins at first had no one to block, then assisted Bell to allow no pass rush from their man. Cooper knocked his guy back then gave up a little ground, but not enough to matter. Gather was on the line next to Cleary and took on a linebacker coming up on the run fake. He used his hands well to force the linebacker to stop and try to make a move to beat him. Clean pocket, no pressure on about a 44-yard catch and run.

1st and 10 - Handoff to McFadden going right around Collins and losing 4 yards. I'm not sure where McFadden was supposed to run on that play. It didn't appear to me the way that Collins was blocking that McFadden was supposed to take the run that wide. Collins got on his man and had him pinned to the outside, but was unable to drive him toward the sideline and McFadden essentially ran right into the tackle as well as a linebacker who came up to fill before Looney could get close to him on the pull. Cooper also got turned by his man who would have been there to make the play if the others hadn't. We had double tight ends to that side and Gathers did a pretty good job of holding up his man, but other than Bell, the line gave McFadden nowhere to go on that side. If he had cut the run up toward Bell's block, he might have at least been able to get back to the line of scrimmage.

2nd and 14 - Three-man rush, dump to Keith Smith for 3. Bell pass his man off to Collins, who had him blocked, but then Smith gave the DE a chip to the ribs that put him on the ground before Smith went out into his pattern. Cooper and Looney doubled the DT, then Bell came over and helped after passing off the end and that DL had no chance of going anywhere. No pressure. Gathers went over the middle and didn't look to be open.

3rd and 11 - 26-yard TD pass to Gathers. Moore given time to pat the ball and find him. Collins got pushed back toward Moore on a stunt that he and Bell picked up well enough. Cooper's man hit Moore after he released the ball by bulling Cooper back (and Moore stepping into his throw). Good throw by Moore where Gathers could get his hands up to catch it and good job by Gathers easily hanging on despite a linebacker draped on him and hitting his hands. Good concentration. Gathers didn't run away from the defender, but the ball was well-placed to allow him to use his size to reach up and grab it.

 

[xwalker]

Here are the breakdowns from the offense's first two drives. I quit writing down my analysis after the first two drives. As you can tell by this, Cooper was solid on most of these snaps.

Keith Smith with an 11-yard return on a short kick behind blocking by Gathers and Lenny Jones. Jones' man beat his block to make the tackle, but neither got much of a push and about five Cardinals were there to make the play.

1st and 10 - Moore dropped back, right end stopped his rush, jumped and knocked down the pass. Looney and Cooper gave up ground on the interior, but it was a quick drop and pass. Collins and Bell doubled the left end and he went nowhere. Gathers went out into the right flat and a linebacker was right there with him

2nd and 10 - Handoff to McFadden behind right guard for 2 yards. It looked like he could have bounced it outside for a bigger gain because Collins just slapped the left end out of the play when he tried to stop his rush and play contain. Cooper took on the right defensive tackle and didn't get movement, but held him up long enough that he wouldn't have made the play. Bell and Looney doubled Nkemdiche, but got no movement, then Nkemdiche beat Looney to make the tackle when Bell peeled off to clear a linebacker from the hole. It's possible the linebacker would have gotten McFadden if he had tried to bounce the run. Gathers tried to block an end, who quickly ripped away from him and made the tackle along with Nkemdiche.

3rd and 8 - 6-yard slant to Andy Jones. Gathers went up the middle but didn't shake the linebacker. Collins set up well to force the left end to try to go around him. The end tried the arm-over technique, but Collins gave him a shove to make him no factor. Cooper and Looney doubled the right defensive tackle and he pretty much was stopped in his tracks. Bell's man, who I think was Nkemdiche, had him on skates and probably would have been able to put some pressure on Moore if it had not been a quick throw. Seems like we were expecting pressure on the play because of the quick, short throw.

Kickoff return - Lenoir with a 15-yard return. Gathers got knocked back as a blocker, which led to Lenoir bouncing the return toward the sideline. (There were a bunch of Cardinals in a clump, so it wasn't just Gathers' block that led to the decision, but it was the block closest to him at the time and with the most penetration.) Leon McFadden called for holding as he tried to prevent his man from pulling away and keeping Lenoir from getting around the corner.

1st and 10 - Pass to Smith for 8 on a roll-out. Dallas had the Cardinals going with the fake run to the right. Collins pushed his man that way then jerked him to the ground. Cooper had no problem pushing his man that direction, either. Gathers was on the right side of the formation, chipped Collins' man then blocked a DB and kind of got hung up on him. Bell's man forced his way by him and a couple of others were unblocked, but all three went for the play-action first which made it a fairly easy pitch and catch.

2nd and 2 - McFadden loses 4 when Looney gets beat badly off the snap. McFadden was heading toward right tackle, where Collins had not driven his man out of the way. However, without Looney's mistake, McFadden would have easily been able to cut inside the block. Cooper did a good job of taking his man down the line of scrimmage, but was looking to get off him and get to the second level. (Cleary was trailing and dived to knock Cooper's man down.) The left end went inside of Gathers, who then pushed him past the play. No blame for McFadden on that one. Nkemdiche blew it up, allowing a linebacker to come in and finish it.

3rd and 6 - Pass to wide-open Jarwin for about 15. Collins' man was kept well away, tried a spin move that didn't work, then tried to bull him back. Cooper and Cleary handled a stunt well, with Cooper taking his man to the ground. Bell allowed late pressure as the ball was coming out. Gathers was running a deeper pattern that went offscreen after he headed straight upfield.

1st and 10 - Fake handoff and deep ball to Butler, who raced through a weak jam and had his man beaten by 3 or 4 yards. Collins at first had no one to block, then assisted Bell to allow no pass rush from their man. Cooper knocked his guy back then gave up a little ground, but not enough to matter. Gather was on the line next to Cleary and took on a linebacker coming up on the run fake. He used his hands well to force the linebacker to stop and try to make a move to beat him. Clean pocket, no pressure on about a 44-yard catch and run.

1st and 10 - Handoff to McFadden going right around Collins and losing 4 yards. I'm not sure where McFadden was supposed to run on that play. It didn't appear to me the way that Collins was blocking that McFadden was supposed to take the run that wide. Collins got on his man and had him pinned to the outside, but was unable to drive him toward the sideline and McFadden essentially ran right into the tackle as well as a linebacker who came up to fill before Looney could get close to him on the pull. Cooper also got turned by his man who would have been there to make the play if the others hadn't. We had double tight ends to that side and Gathers did a pretty good job of holding up his man, but other than Bell, the line gave McFadden nowhere to go on that side. If he had cut the run up toward Bell's block, he might have at least been able to get back to the line of scrimmage.

2nd and 14 - Three-man rush, dump to Keith Smith for 3. Bell pass his man off to Collins, who had him blocked, but then Smith gave the DE a chip to the ribs that put him on the ground before Smith went out into his pattern. Cooper and Looney doubled the DT, then Bell came over and helped after passing off the end and that DL had no chance of going anywhere. No pressure. Gathers went over the middle and didn't look to be open.

3rd and 11 - 26-yard TD pass to Gathers. Moore given time to pat the ball and find him. Collins got pushed back toward Moore on a stunt that he and Bell picked up well enough. Cooper's man hit Moore after he released the ball by bulling Cooper back (and Moore stepping into his throw). Good throw by Moore where Gathers could get his hands up to catch it and good job by Gathers easily hanging on despite a linebacker draped on him and hitting his hands. Good concentration. Gathers didn't run away from the defender, but the ball was well-placed to allow him to use his size to reach up and grab it.

You should continue doing these but I think most people will enjoy them after the game more than during the game. I'm always interested to see someone else's perspective on plays, especially the stuff around the line of scrimmage. It's an interesting mental exercise to look at running plays and project in your mind what would have happened if somebody did something slightly differently.

Sometimes run plays are doomed before the snap. If an OL needs to cut off a LB for the play to work, but that LB lines up a yard or two over from where the offense anticipated, then the play can be doomed right there. It would be cool if one of the video games could take in real game video and allow the user to see what would happen if 1 block was just a little better or if a RB took one step over, etc.. It ones of the joys of football that I think many people don't see because they're always focused on the ball.

The difference in that area between having Houck as the OL coach and then having Callahan/Pollack is fairly extreme. Even when the current team man blocks, they do it with a certain amount of precision. When Houck was here, it was just block the guy in front of you and it didn't even have much focus on what type of leverage to play on specific plays. The reason that Free was functional as a run blocker is because they schemed it that way. He didn't have to try to get movement because he couldn't get movement on DLInemen. If they did plan for him to get movement, they would scheme to get him on a LB. They've even had 2 TEs block the DE and let Free block a LB just so that Free could be on the smaller player. Obviously a lot of the success is due to the talent they added since Houck, but a lot of it is also the brilliance of Callahan's scheme.

They're probably doing more block the guy in front of you stuff in these preseason games so it makes it a littler harder to judge.

 

[diefree666]

You should continue doing these but I think most people will enjoy them after the game more than during the game. I'm always interested to see someone else's perspective on plays, especially the stuff around the line of scrimmage. It's an interesting mental exercise to look at running plays and project in your mind what would have happened if somebody did something slightly differently.

Sometimes run plays are doomed before the snap. If an OL needs to cut off a LB for the play to work, but that LB lines up a yard or two over from where the offense anticipated, then the play can be doomed right there. It would be cool if one of the video games could take in real game video and allow the user to see what would happen if 1 block was just a little better or if a RB took one step over, etc.. It ones of the joys of football that I think many people don't see because they're always focused on the ball.

The difference in that area between having Houck as the OL coach and then having Callahan/Pollack is fairly extreme. Even when the current team man blocks, they do it with a certain amount of precision. When Houck was here, it was just block the guy in front of you and it didn't even have much focus on what type of leverage to play on specific plays. The reason that Free was functional as a run blocker is because they schemed it that way. He didn't have to try to get movement because he couldn't get movement on DLInemen. If they did plan for him to get movement, they would scheme to get him on a LB. They've even had 2 TEs block the DE and let Free block a LB just so that Free could be on the smaller player. Obviously a lot of the success is due to the talent they added since Houck, but a lot of it is also the brilliance of Callahan's scheme.

They're probably doing more block the guy in front of you stuff in these preseason games so it makes it a littler harder to judge.

Callahan was a VERY under rated O line coach; and thankfully Pollack is high caliber as well. Houck was over the hill when he came back.